texts: Meaning of 人間ではない自分の心に、気づいた

texts:
In the below passage I am not sure on the meaning of the last line. The context of the scene is in hospital and the narrator has been told by あずきさん she only has several days to live and they are hiding this from her daughter. The narrator あずきさん's adopted son.

胸にあたたかい水が染みこんできた。
彼女は泣いていた。
不安からか、安心からだろうか
だけど、僕とあずきさんは、嘘をついていた。
この優しい子を、愛しい子を、悲しませないために。
でも、このままでは、もっと深く彼女を傷つけてしまう。
ああ、僕は涙を流していない。
あの病室で、どれだけ心が乱れても、泣かなかった。
あずきさんが死んだら泣くのか？
わからない。
実の両親の死に際に、僕は泣いたのだろうか？
覚えていない。
そんなところだけ、人間ではない自分の心に、気づいた。

Breaking it down, my understanding is that 自分の心に気づいた means he realized his own 'heart' or feelings. However, the part of the sentence that comes before this is そんなところだけ、人間ではない自分. そんなところだけ、人間ではない I think means that's the only part/thing that 'is not human'(I think this is in the figurative sense). However, this gives me something like, I realised that was the only part of me that was not human. Is this correct?


texts: Can お[邪魔]{じゃま}します be used in cases of long-term stay?

texts:
So I need to write an email for an assignment where I am an exchange student who is going to Japan and staying at someone's house for a period of time.

I want to begin with "thank you very much for having me" which would normally be お邪魔します as watching Japanese shows with subtitles have taught me. But I feel like お邪魔します feels more like a short-time thing like "sorry for the (temporary) intrusion" as opposed to something along the lines of what I want to say.

What would be more correct in the context that I am writing in?


texts: Can もすこし遠かったら be used to mean "too far"?

texts:
Can もすこし遠かったら be used in the following sentence to mean if it is too far I will not go.

  もすこし遠かったら行かないんですが。


texts: I assume it's some slang that comes from ゴリラ perhaps. I found many examples of it being used in completely different situations and now I'm very confused... Apparently there is even a small book about its meaning, haha.


texts: what is the difference between 均等 and 平等 and 等しい？　All of them can be adjectives

texts: What is the difference between 均等 and 平等 and 等しい？　All of them can be adjectives. Could you make some examples to show the difference?


texts:
I heard the word もう (meaning "already, not anymore") pronounced as むう in this song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3R3uMTMHgPc at about 1:18, and yet it is transcribed as "mou". Is it a pronunciation mistake or a dialectal pronunciation? Did the person mistranscribe what is said, or did I simply mishear the word?
Thanks very much for your answers.


texts:
Can someone please explain the bold grammar?

  せんてんてき 【先天的】 《ダナ》生まれながらにして持っていること


texts: What is the difference between いえ and うち?

texts:
I am trying to understand the difference between using いえ and うち. I originally drew the conclusion that うち is used for your own house and いえ for others' houses, but my Japanese teacher said that this is not always true (but did not explain how to use each...).

What is the correct usage of いえ and うち? What difference is implied by using one instead of the other?


texts:
I'm solving exercises for N1 level and I came across this question.

新しい家に飾る絵を探しているが、なかなか＿＿というものが見つからない。
A. これか
B. これは
C. これさえ
D. これだけ

The correct answer is B but I think it should be C.
I don't understand what the grammar point of 「これはというもの」is.


texts: Not using くて in i-adjective Conjunctions

texts:
I've been reading 猿蟹 from this website.

I've come across a sentence that puzzles me grammatically:

  まだ青い固い柿の実を、蟹に投げつけました。

Here, there is a conjunction of two i-adjectives, but the writer doesn't use くて to join them (to say 青くて固い）. I wonder why this is so?


texts:
A type of sentence or clause which seems to be common is one that has a long pre-modifying clause in front of a pronoun or a proper noun.

Example from a blog post:

塗装したいものがたくさんあるのに、塗料を決められない、色が決められない、高いのはイヤ、という三重苦でまったく進まない私。

What sort of sense does this convey, esp. comparing to sentences where the pronoun/proper noun is a が-marked subject or は-marked topic instead? How is that sense usually translated?


texts: What is the difference between 怖い and 恐い

texts:
As a follow-up to Would 私は怖い mean "I'm scared" or "I'm scary"?

We know that 怖い can mean both "to be scared" and "to be scary to somebody".

What about the difference between 怖い and 恐い?
Or more general 怖 and 恐?
How does 恐 come to mean such different things as:

  恐らく （おそらく） – regrettably
  恐竜 （きょうりゅう） – dinosaur


texts: Does "te-form" of a verb always include て/で? Why?

texts:
In so-called 学校文法 (the Japanese grammar which all native Japanese speakers learn at around middle school), one form of a verb is called 連用形 (aka continuative form), which looks like this (screenshot from 連用形 on Japanese Wikipedia):

As you can see, there are actually two forms of 連用形 for 五段活用 verbs (aka Group 1 verbs, consonant-stem verbs, or u-verbs). One is rather simple (changing the last -u to -i), but the other form is heavily influenced by sound changes called 音便.

Until very recently, I had believed that masu-form and te-form are the simple, straightforward terms to distinguish the two forms 連用形 listed above. I believed they are the direct subset of 連用形. 書き is the masu-form of 書く, 書い is the te-form of 書く, 立ち is the masu-form of 立つ, 立っ is the te-form of 立つ, and so on. The masu-form is called masu-form because it's typically followed by ます, and the te-form is called te-form because it's typically followed by て/で.

And finally, I realized I was wrong. If I say "te-form", listeners imagine it also includes the て/で part. I checked several free learning sites for Japanese-as-the-second-language learners and found these names (taking 読む as an example verb):

読み: i-form (WP), stem (CC), verb stem (TK), 連用形 (TUFS), masu-stem, 連用形 (学校文法)
読みます: i-form + masu (WP), masu-form (CC, LJA), polite form = verb stem + masu (TK), ます形 (TUFS), 連用形+助動詞"ます" (学校文法)
読ん: N/A (WP, CC, LJA, TK, TUFS), 連用形 (学校文法)
読んだ: perfective-form (WP), ta-form (CC, LJA), past tense (TK), た形 (TUFS), 連用形+助動詞"だ" (学校文法)
読んで: te-form (WP, CC, LJA, TK), て形 (TUFS), 連用形+接続助詞"で" (学校文法)

(WP: English Wikipedia, CC: CosCom, LJA: learn-japanese-adventure.com, TK: Tae Kim's Guide to Learning Japanese, TUFS: 東京外国語大学言語モジュール)

So, what I believed was te-form is not te-form, and it doesn't even have an English name! (It can be confirmed by this question.) ます/て/で are not even considered as distinct "words" here; they are considered as a part of the conjugation of a verb. In monolingual dictionaries, ます, て/で and た/だ are all distinct words (either 助動詞 or 接続助詞) that attach 連用形.

Questions

Does "te-form" really only mean the form including て/で, regardless of the school/faction? If I say "読ん is the te-form of 読む" or "読み is the masu-form of 読む", am I totally wrong?
Is there any practical reason for not having a name for 読ん/立っ/etc and thinking of 読んだ and 読んで as different "forms"?
I understand that there is no single "correct grammar of Japanese", but what is the historical cause of this discrepancy? Perhaps someone was not satisfied with the Japanese grammar invented by Japanese people, and published a book with his own grammar in the past?

(PS: I'm not willing to keep using confusing terms. I just want to know the best words for learners, and, hopefully, help future native Japanese answerers who haven't heard of "te-form" or "masu-form" at all.)


texts: Syllable final -t in early modern Japanese?

texts:
There is an unsourced claim in the Wikipedia article on Early Modern Japanese that its phonology admitted syllable-final /t/.

This seems unlikely, since to my knowledge all reconstructions going back to OJ posit the same gross syllable structure as the modern language.

Does anyone know where this claim originated, and whether it's true?


texts: What is the difference between 織機(しょっき) and 機 (はた)?

texts:
Does 織機 mean the device, while 機 means the concept?

Or maybe one of them is more formal than the other?


texts: Difference between Kaiwa (会話) vs Taiwa (対話 )?

texts:
I came across the word かいわ in the Genki Textbook and it was translated as "dialogue". But when I put it into google translate it said it was "たいわ”.

Could someone please explain to me the differences in these two words, with maybe sentence or phrase examples?

thank you


texts:
そして、　いま時代は大きく動きだそうとしていた
And now the time was about to/was going to change dramatically.
It's from Naruto. Kakashi is explaining how the Naruto universe works.
I'm not sure what として does here.
Is it the particle と marking "a manner of doing something" + する. If so, what does する mean here?
or is it として as in "as?"


texts:
What is the meaning of 商{あきな}いせず? It is common to use the stem verb plus せず instead of the negative form of the verb plus ず?

  持ち込んだ荷物を商{あきな}いせず


texts: First off, I understand the use of ～の時 (when). However, with my current knowledge, this doesn't make sense if I try to use it with verbs in phrases such as "when I woke up". It's probably quite obvious, but how would I structure "when [x] did [verb]" or "when [event/action] happened"?


texts: What's the difference between "doko ga ... desu ka" and "... doko ni arimasu ka"?

texts:
I'm reading a textbook and I have this example:

  Takashi-san no ie wa doko ni arimasu ka?

Trying to understand why is arimasu used instead of desu I rephrased it like so:

  Doko ga Takashi-san no ie desu ka?

and I can't tell the meaning difference.
Is the second sentence wrong gramatically or logically? It's there a preference when it comes to using the first one?

Thank you in advance!


texts: What is the purpose of putting 「のは」 at the end of a sentence?

texts:
The dialogues below are said by an old man to stop a fight between young guys in two separate speech balloons. The first one is a screaming-type speech balloon which he shouted at them and the later one is a normal speech balloon which he said in a milder tone.

First balloon: おっと　よしな　よしな　くだらねえなぐりあいなんぞやるのは！
Second balloon: どうせ　やるんなら堂々と正式の拳闘でケリをつけたらどうなんだい

According to my understanding, the particle 「のは」 used for nominalizing the preceding verb and making it to be a topic marker. I would like to know why it has to be put at the end of the sentence.


texts: What's the difference between 学部 and 学科?

texts:
In the Kanji textbook I've been studying from, I've seen compounds like

社会学部 or 物理学科

and both are then translated as 'the department/faculty of ～'. Is there any difference between 部 and 科 in this instance and if so, what is it? (I know someone who is a 部長 is above someone who is a 科長, so is a (subject～)部 larger, or encompassing of, a (subject～)科 perhaps? Just a guess...)
Thank you for any and all help!


texts: Does any Japanese dialect consistently NOT mute vowels?

texts:
Dropping randomly from question to answer I came across this answer from which I quote:

Note that vowel muting is a feature of some dialects of Japanese including the Tokyo dialect.

(The linked question and answer deal with whether or not the vowels /u/ and /i/ may or may not be reduced in a given environment.)
The way this is phrased the reverse question immediately popped up in my mind: are there any dialects of Japanese that consistently do not mute vowels?


texts:
I am having problems with when to understand 大抵 as:

a)　事柄のあらまし。だいたいのようす。また、全体のうちの大部分。おおよそ。おおかた。(https://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/word/大抵/#jn-133918) (or as defined in Apple's dictionary) 全体の中の大部分のもの。ほとんどのもの。大体。

b) ほとんどすべてに及ぶさま。たいがい。https://kotobank.jp/word/大抵-557812

While I am aware of the difference between noun and adverb I saw the sentence:

1) 「大抵は魔法使いの エキスパートで―…」

translated as: "In general they are experts in using magic"

However I initially understood it as: "Most of them are experts in using magic" (especially sticking to the definition referred to in the Mac-dictionary)

I first came across this word in:

2) 「大丈夫だって。大抵の奴はわからんよ。」

In that case the meaning was pretty clear to me and according to its meaning here I thought in 「大抵は…」　its meaning is the same as in 2).

Context: (Season 1 Episode 2 of このすば)
The "race" of Crimson-Demons is explained and general characteristics of them are listed and the this sentence is some kind of "conclusion" to it.


texts: Meaning of おともだちになるあくしゅ

texts:
ありがとう。それでね、これがあくしゅ、なの。

  あくしゅ？

  そう。おともだちになるあくしゅ。

  そうなんだ。うん、ことばでおしえてもらったときよりも、わかったきがする。

  なんていうのかな、あなたのこと、みぢかにかんじる。

  ねぇ、もしかしておともだちになるって、こういうこと？

  うん、そうだよ。そのとおりだよ。

  わぁ。じゃあ、わたしたち、これでおともだちに――

Context: Kid one is trying to become friends with kid two, kid two doesn't understand what being friends means.

My question is about the meaning of おともだちになるあくしゅ and to what これで refers to in this exchange.

おともだちになるあくしゅ- おともだちになる means to "become friends" and あくしゅ means a handshake. Now my question is how to interpret what this actually means. Does a おともだちになるあくしゅ refer to a handshake which signifies that they have become friends?

My next question is about the これで. Does this refer back to the handshake they did earlier or does it refer to their several lines after this? It's clear that she still didn't quite grasp what it meant to be friends and then clarifies it by asking if what she feels is what it means to become friends, and then after being told she is right, she then says the final line.


texts:
アメリカのハワイ州ホノルル市では１０月から、道を渡っているときに、スマートフォンやコンピューターなどを見たり触ったりすることが禁止になります。
  In Honolulu in the American state of Hawaii, from October, looking at and touching smart phones while crossing the road will be prohibited.
  アメリカではほとんどの州で、車を運転しながらスマートフォンを触ることが禁止になっています。
  In America, in most states, touching smart phones while driving has been prohibited.

If the standard translation of 'to touch/feel' is used for 触る in these sentences then they sound a bit weird. I think in this context 'to handle' would be a better translation, but I haven't seen this translation in dictionaries.

To what extent, if any, can 触る be used to mean 'handle'? Could you please give some other examples so I can get a feel for its use?


texts:
だが、十香のいる水族館と目と鼻の先というのは、精神衛生上あまりよろしくなかった。

Context: the protagonist (士道) is dating 十香 and they went to 水族館 together. But in the process of watching fishes in 水族館, 士道 runs away, pretending to go to the restroom because he has to date another girl, 折紙. 折紙 offers to eat in a restaurant, which happens to be close to the 水族館. 士道 worries that they might run into 十香 if they go to that restaurant.

Question: how would the nuance change if we omit the bold というの by just saying は?
I found a seemingly related question here.
What is the difference between というのは or は when used as a topical marker?
I’m not sure if the question that already existed is related to my example, though.
Thank you.


texts:
What is the difference between these two words? My teacher has listed a few examples of each:

紙の裏{うら} • ビルの裏 • 裏ゲート

後ろの席 • Aさんの後ろ

My hypothesis is that 裏 refers to a surface (such as paper, building) while 後ろ refers to the three-dimensional space behind an object (such as seats in a theatre, space behind a person) Is this accurate?

After trying to read an answer on a Japanese forum, I found myself more confused; 車の裏 can mean the bottom of the car, and ビルの裏 refers to the side opposite the entrance whereas ビルの後ろ refers to the side opposite the place where the speaker stands / is talking about. Are there any general rules to explain when 裏 means bottom, or when 裏 and 後ろ change depending on point of view?

Link to forum: http://sp.okwave.jp/qa/q7795599.html


texts: What is 誘われて (Sasowarete) in this song lyric?

texts:
I am a beginner Japanese student, and I'm going through a song and translating it. I am struggling to understand the word 誘われて in the first line. I understand that the verb is 誘う; is this the -te form? I thought the -te form would be 誘って.

The full context is this:

  真っ白な景色にいま誘われて
  僕は行くよ　まだ見ぬ世界へ

I would appreciate any help! Bonus points if you can guess the song :)


texts:
I ran into this phrase more than once now.

  何を言い出すのかと思えば

I have found what 言い出す and かと思えば mean separately in dictionaries. I'm just not sure what they mean when put together. My first interpretation was "Tell me what you think."

But I don't know what would differentiate this phrase from just saying using 何 and 思う.


texts: Are the 4-byte UTF-8 Kanji rare enough that I can ignore them?

texts:
I'm writing a programming algorithm which converts code points of Kanji characters to their respective UTF-8 octets.

My problem is, if I don't include 4-octet characters, and only deal with 3-octet ones, I will store each code point in 2 bytes for every character in the text. If I also include 4-octet Kanji, I need to store each code point in 4 bytes (actually they theoretically consume 3 bytes, but it is not practical to store 3 byte variables for optimization concerns); that makes two times more memory consumption.

Normal Kanji ==> UTF-8 octets: 3 bytes ==> UTF-8 code point: up to 0xFFFF (2 bytes)
Rare Kanji   ==> UTF-8 octets: 4 bytes ==> UTF-8 code point: above 0xFFFF (4 bytes)

I read another question about this. It is said that only some very rarely-used characters in the "CJK Unified Ideographs Extension B" and "CJK Compatibility Ideographs Supplement" blocks are encoded with 3 octets.

What does rarely used mean in this case? How often are they used? Can I completely ignore them? What happens if my algorithm converts these rarely used characters into some kind of "unidentified character" code?

(Please don't move this question to Stack Overflow. I'm more concerned with linguistic usage of these characters. My question is not related to programming.)


texts:
What's its role in the sentence below?

クラスのもの皆が彼の冗談に笑った。


texts: What is the meaning of 「はあ」 in this excerpt?

texts:
日本語
こんにちは。
川上弘美著の「神様」という小説を読んでいます。
「河童玉」という章の以下のくだりに、男河童と女河童と人間のウテナさんの三人がいます。

「ほれご挨拶を」と（男河童に）うながされて、女河童はもじもじしながら頭を下げた。下げるなり、ウテナさんににじり寄って、「うちのひとがはあお世話に。河童玉やらなにやら、できることは全部してみたんですが、いまひとつ効果なしなんですよう、せつないやらつまらんやらはあ」と喋りはじめた。

現在の日本語と違った言葉なのかなと思いますが、上の「はあ」はどういう意味でしょうか？
悲しさやら感慨深さを強調して表す助詞だと思っています。
よろしくお願いします。
English

「ほれご挨拶を」と（男河童に）うながされて、女河童はもじもじしながら頭を下げた。下げるなり、ウテナさんににじり寄って、「うちのひとがはあお世話に。河童玉やらなにやら、できることは全部してみたんですが、いまひとつ効果なしなんですよう、せつないやらつまらんやらはあ」と喋りはじめた。

What is the meaning of はあ in the excerpt cited above?
From the context I would guess it is an interjection that is supposed to emphasize emotions, maybe in particular ones like sadness.


texts:
I confuse with usage of 探し in this sentence:

  探しに行くんだ そこへ

I have tried to google it. But they show me 探す which is a u-verb. And I am unable to find sagashi. The closest one is sagashita which is its past form. It is a type of clipping such as "chemistry" becomes "chem" or what?

My question is: in what form sagashi is and when to use it?


texts:
Sometimes I heard people refer 0.11% as

  レイテン　イチイチ　パーセント

While others believe

  レイテン　ジュウイチ　パーセント

is more correct.

Which version is more popularly accepted?


texts:
I'm trying to read a children's book and have already gotten stumped by the first sentence. "context" The picture shows an autumn day.
It reads:

ある  つめたい  かぜの  ふく  ひ。

So far I've got ... (chilly wind blow)...
At first I thought ある was 'walk' and the grammar made no sense to me, but have then realized walk should instead be あるく.  Also, ひ made no sense either.  So looking up ある on Jisho I found that together あるひ (ある日) means "one day".
Is it correct to assume that ある and 日 can be split apart grammatically?

ある ( 冷たい 風の 吹く ) 日。

And if that's the case would :
One day, a chilly wind blew. =/= A chilly wind blew, one day. : be correct?


texts: Is "part-time work" an accurate translation of バイト?

texts:
The most common translation I see of バイト I see is "part-time work". However, the contexts I see it used in seem to refer to casual work, as opposed to people having a permanent job, merely with reduced hours, such as women with young children (does this scenario not occur in Japan?).

Is "part-time work" a more accurate translation of バイト than "casual work"?


texts: Is there a standard way to clearly differentiate similar handwritten (kana) characters?

texts:
In English, you often see people who write certain letters or numbers with an extra stroke to differentiate them from similar characters, for example people will write a z with a horizontal stroke to differentiate between "z" and "2". Similarly 7 is sometimes written with a horizontal line through it to differentate it from the number 1. There is also the slashed zero / dotted zero to cleanly differentiate 0 (0) from O (O).

I often have a lot of trouble clearly writing certain pairs in a cleanly distinguished way, for example, シ and ツ, ソ and ン, and to a much lesser extent the pairs ユ and コ and サ and せ. Is there a standard variant form for these characters, or do you just annotate it with its counterpart from the other kana when you want to be absolutely clear about it, like [シ]{し}?

There is a related question about distinguishing certain kanji from similar-looking kana, but that is not a problem I've really had.


texts: Why doesn't Japanese have a special Katakana form for "hu"?

texts:
They have created many new Katakana words such as ファ フィ ヴァ ヴィ ティ テゥ to write foreign sounds. But why didn't they create a new combination for "hu" such as ハゥ or ホゥ? Instead they use the same kana for "hu" and "fu" and make the situation sometimes more confuse.

It's not because most of them can't pronounce it since they can't pronounce "V" either, replaced with ヴイ for differentiation, and in most cases it's still being pronounced as "B". Even if to Japanese it's /hu/ as they have /ha hi hu he ho/ then why don't create a special case for /fu/ when they had created /fa fi fe fo/. In other words why don't they write /fu/ and /hu/ differently like in the case of /va/ and /ba/


texts: Is it true that にしたって is the colloquial form of にしたところで?

texts:
I've been thinking if it is true that にしたって is the colloquial form of にしたところで. In other words, are the bottom two sentences identical in meaning and nuance?

1) 彼は日本語を20年も勉強しているが、その彼にしたところで、まだ分からない文法に時々出くわすそうだ。

2) 彼は日本語を20年も勉強しているが、その彼にしたって、まだ分からない文法に時々出くわすそうだ。

  He has studied Japanese for 20 years, but he told me that even he
  encounters grammar he doesn't understand.


texts: What is the difference in nuance and usage of the two kanji forms for なおす (naosu), 直す and 治す?

texts:
Stolen directly from Grigory M's question in the definition phase:

http://area51.stackexchange.com/proposals/7526?phase=definition


texts: Why does 出る accepts を although it is an intransitive verb?

texts: The JLPT N5 textbook and the Tangorin online dictionary say 出る is intransitive and, as far as I know, should be used with が, but the Genki I textbook says it accepts を when it means "to exit". So, which is correct?


texts: Is there a ことわざ similar to "water under the bridge" and "let bygones be bygones"?

texts:
Earlier today in a comment I tried to explain to a community member that they should put whatever happened in the past behind them. I used "water behind the bridge" and "let bygones be bygones". For context, the two English idioms are:
water under the bridge

—used to say that something happened in the past and is no longer important or worth arguing about
We had our differences in the past, but that's all water under the bridge now.

let bygones be bygones

to forgive someone for something done or for a disagreement and to forget about it
I know we've had our fights over the years, but I think it's time we let bygones be bygones.

I've found some explanations of the two phrases in Japanese but have yet to find a corresponding ことわざ.


texts: 「五輪に向けて」か「五輪に向かって」か。。。

texts:
「オリンピックに向けて…」

Is this phrase interchangeable with 向かって？

  「オリンピックに向かって…」

What's the difference?


texts: Google translates 六等星の夜 to　night of a million stars. But shouldn't a million stars be 百万星? Moreover google translates 六等星 as six stars. Is this a translation error? If not, can anyone explain why?


texts:
I recently wanted to compliment someone for having done something "very cute," and wound up using まさにかわいい. They understood me, but now I suspect that is a weird way to say it. More common variations would be ほんとうにかわいい and とてもかわいい. I have seen people use what I wrote; for example, まさにかわいい男の子, but they're not necessarily doing it right either. Does まさにかわいい even convey the correct meaning, and if so, is it common enough to not seem bizarre?

Edit: Based on some comments, I should clarify that I used the phrase as an exclamation. I said「まさにかわいい」only, in response to watching a performance. The English equivalent would be to exclaim "very cute!" after watching someone perform. The example I included of「まさにかわいい男の子」is one where I've seen the phrase used; but I don't know I've seen it used stand-alone as I did.


texts:
I've seen it being used as a noun for 'crystals' in a game and it's also been used as a verb in the form of 'Kesshou!(crystallize!)' for a superhero transformation call in Spielban.

Is simply saying Kesshou normal for using it as a verb or do you normally attach -suru to make Kesshou a verb?


texts: Regarding 何と言うか、というのがある

texts:
Regarding this bit,

日本人がアメリカ人によく聞かれて困る質問の一つに、”How are you?" は日本語で何と言うか、というのがある

I'm guessing the meaning is something along the lines of
"One of the troubling questions that Japanese are asked often by Americans is how to say "How are you" in japanese. "
Is the 何と言うか the same なんというか that's used when you're not sure how to phrase something, like:

A: みきちゃんは、あんたの彼女でしょう？ B: う～ん、彼女というか、友達というか、なんというか・・・

or is it translated as literally "what to say?"
also could you break down というのがある's grammar or what it means in this context.
these phrases aren't on the jisho sentence database so having a hard time with them


texts: Who knows the difference between 忘れてた and 忘れちゃった? In what kind of situations you use each of those?


texts: Japanese special phrases for "study season" and "long holiday season following study season"

texts:
I am looking for two separate Japanese phrases that each convey meanings as follows,

A "study season" in which the study or lecture begins to ends with some short holidays in between. For example, a study season of 4 months long that spans from the beginning of April to the end of July with some short holidays (such as golden week or other national holidays).
A "long holiday season following study season" with no study at all. For example, it spans for about 1-3 months after study season.


texts:
Could someone help me translate this?

  ２２歳でこんなことも思い出せない。。。あせる
  これから気が遠いよ

I think the first sentence is something about being 22 years old and not remembering well. As for the second sentence, I can only make out "from now on, feel far" (??).

I am not sure how the second sentence relates to the first one.


texts:
I know that ですね is a form of saying right? but in this sentence これビデオですね what does that means? I understand that means "it's a video" but I don't understand the ね. A friend was recording a video and some people thought it was a photo and they posed but then she said it ain't was a photo.

  focusing in some friends
  they pose
  これ、ビデオですね。
  ビデオですか？
  laughs


texts:
I'm translating bits of Hyrule Historia to test myself a bit and I'm a little confused by this sentence structure.

お面を使うリンク

I'm inclined to say this translates to something along the lines of:

"Link uses a mask."

But can someone explain to me why the subject is appearing after the verb and without a particle?


texts: How does one express "late" or "lateness"?

texts: So I know that おそい, ちこく, and おくれる all can mean late. But I don't know what context to use which in. Can I just swap おそくなります, ちこくする, and おくれる at will?


texts: Is there a name for kanji compounds consisting of kanji with the same radical and for compounds with repeated kanji?

texts:
There are lots of 二字熟語, say, where both characters have the same radical, e.g., 明日, 機械, and 往復.  I find these interesting as often the common radical is strongly associated with the meaning of the compound.  Of course, there are also lots of compounds where the character itself is repeated（e.g. 色々, 数々, and 日々), though I would put these in a different category.

Is there a name for either of these types of kanji compounds?

I tried looking at the Wikipedia entry for 踊り字 for the second type, but didn't notice any special word for it used there, just something like 同じ漢字を重ねる.


texts: How to say "many" in "There are many wheat fields" in Japanese? (たくさん or いっぱい?)

texts: I am writing a short descriptive text and I would like to write "There are many wheat fields". Is it better to say 「たくさんの麦畑があります。」or 「麦畑がいっぱいあります。」?


texts: How do Japanese understand "non-standard" words without looking at kanji?

texts:
This question seems so "obvious" that there might be a duplicate but could not find any.

Anyway, while I try to think how to better rephrase the title, let me explain briefly what I mean.

I'll give a simple but I think quite explanatory example. Suppose I'm watching a movie or an anime without subtitles. As an example let's take one of my childhood favorites: Hokuto no Ken.

At some point I hear: じんせいのシュウ。

My question is: how would even Japanese people understand that that: じんせい
 = 仁星?

I mean, I don't think 仁星 is a "real word" (at least not common for sure). So how would anyone be able to grasp the meaning of "star of benevolence" from the sound じんせい without an explanation or without looking at the kanji? The only reason I could guess it was because I already knew the story. But how would a native Japanese do?

There could be of course many more examples like this but I believe this one is simple an concise enough to express the whole point.


texts:
I'm learning this word and the softwares I'm using (the package JLPT N4 Vocabulary Deck on Anki, and the app Takoboto, plus Google translation) tell me that sakan is pronunced "sakau" with a "u" sound at the end ! I'm confused.

Is it really how this word is pronunced ? Or is it an error of translation ?

edit:

Acually, all the words finishing in -n that I've just tried on Google translation (konban, ichiban, nedan) finished with the sound "u" by the person speaking.

I wasn't aware this problem existed.


texts: the omission of an implied "の" creates the appearance of a 四字熟語{よじじゅくご}?

texts:
I believe that www.yojijukugo.com  has a pretty thorough list of 四字熟語? Is there a better site?
However, I know that I've seen a lot of 4, or more, adjacent kanji that are not listed as 熟語。An example is "原子発電{げんしはつでん}"。

When I see 4 adjacent kanji that are not listed as 熟語、then that just means "の" is being omitted (to save space when printed). From context, you know the meaning without the "の".
You say "原子発電" instead of "原子の発電" just as an extension of what is done when writing.
real 四字熟語  are pretty rare, so you must assume that 4 kanji in a row is not a 四字熟語 until you can prove it in a dictionary, right?
The ability to omit "の" when, by context, everyone knows it is there, allows you to say stuff like "愛国精神{あいこくせいしん}", "愛社精神{あいしゃせいしん}", "愛人類精神{あいじんるいせいしん}", etc. right? The technique is, if the "の" is obvious by context, you don't necessarily have to say it?


texts: そんな事で変わる未来じゃないだろう where's the subject

texts:
I'm reading the manga Orange and one of the lines that's said by a character is

  「転ばないよう気をつけろ」なんて言っても、そんな事で変わる未来じゃない

So far, my understanding of the sentence is:

  転ばないよう気をつけろ」なんて言っても
  Even if we tell (him) to be careful not to fall

The next clause is where I get a little tripped up:

  そんな事で変わる未来　じゃない

The translation from the anime is "we won't be able to change anything." So the question is more of a grammatical question, not so much a translation question.

It's saying that the "(Something) is not the future that will change by doing that" but the (something) isn't specified. What is that something? In other words, 何が　そんな事で変わる未来　じゃない？

In a simpler example, if I say 明日食べるケーキ　じゃない and there's a cake in front of me, then the meaning is clear: This cake is not the one I'll eat tomorrow. So is the same grammar logic happening in my manga sentence, and there's an implied subject that's happening somewhere in the conversation?


texts: Why some of the ren'youkeis (masu stem forms) have different meanings when they form compound verbs?

texts:
The following are taken from the 新明解国語辞書.

取り [接頭語的に]　動詞に冠し、「十分に、慎重に、確実に」などの意を加える。「ーあつかう・ーつくろう・ー調べる」
打ち 動詞の上に冠して、「ちょっと・すっかり・よく」などの意を表わす。「ー見る・ー明ける・ー沈む・ー興ずる・ー砕く」

and there are more examples like this. However, the corresponding verbs 「取る」「打つ」 do not seem to have these meanings, nor do the kanjis (as I understand it from a native Chinese speaker's perspective).
So my question is, how do these stem forms acquire these meanings?
To elaborate, is it related to the history (classical Japanese perhaps) or how Japanese people understand these things? Do native Japanese consider 取る+調べる to naturally have the meaning of 取り調べる, or is the 取り in 取り調べる understood as "something different" as well by native speakers? How to make the difference more easy to understand for Japanese learners?
Personally I found it very confusing when I attempted to get the meaning of 取り調べる from 取る+調べる (or 取って調べる). A even worse case is attempting to get the meaning of 打ち明ける from 打って明ける which does not seem to be used at all in Japanese according to Google. It didn't seem clear to me until I saw the quotes above and learnt that they can mean something different.


texts: Adapting 楽しい時を過ごしてください

texts:
Can you "adapt" the phrase 楽しい時を過ごしてください ("Have fun" or "Enjoy your time") to refer to a specific situation? I.e. if I want to say "enjoy your time in Hokkaido" or "enjoy your time with your friend [who is visiting]" or ...

If yes, how would I go about it?

北海道、楽しい時を過ごしてください。
北海道で、楽しい時を過ごしてください。
something else?
(ご)家族と、楽しい時を過ごしてください。
something else?

If none of these work, do you have other suggestions for wishing people a nice time, but being a bit more specific about it? The level of politeness I need right now is somewhat formal (equivalent to a friend's parent) but I'd love to learn about any more casual options, too.


texts: What am I told here about the use of 「所々」

texts:
The following is an excerpt from a dialogue between and my language partner. I asked her about the use of ところどころ and wether particles need to be attached at the end or not. For context, this is the full block in which she replied to me concerning this topic:

「所々（ところどころ）」の使い方です。 これが意外と難しいです。助詞がつく場合とつかない場合があるのです。 「所々」は「あちこち」を意味する名詞ですが、それ自体で副詞のようにも使えます（in places) 「所々、原作と違ってもいい」 は正しい使い方です。 「所々に、原作と違う部分がある」 も正しい使い方です。 「所々で違う場面展開がある」 のように使うこともできます。
使い分けを説明するのは難しいのですが、基本的に「所々」だけで使える場合が多いように思います。 上の３つの文章はすべて「所々」だけでも使えますが、「所々に、原作と違ってもいい」 という言い方はできず、「所々で、原作と違ってもいい」 という言い方はできます。 つまり、助詞を使うことで意味を限定しているのではないでしょうか。 わかりにくかったらごめんなさい。

The sentence in question:
上の３つの文章はすべて「所々」だけでも使えますが、「所々に、原作と違ってもいい」 という言い方はできず、「所々で、原作と違ってもいい」 という言い方はできます
My attempt at translation:
"Concerning the 3 sentences from above, although with only 所々　is entirely usable, not using the 「所々に、原作と違ってもいい」way of saying, you can use this way of saying 「所々で、原作と違ってもいい」."
As I understood and translated the sentence, she is telling me that I can ALWAYS use 所々 without any particle attached, but if I want to attach a particle, I can always use で instead of に?


texts: Help understanding a JLPT N3 conversation (～くらいだから)

texts:
This is from a JLPT N3 listening comprehension test on Youtube. This is the transcript they give in the answer key.

M: すみません、カバンを落{お｝としたみたいなんですが。
F: 電車｛でんしゃ｝の中｛なか｝じゃないですか？よく忘｛わす｝れる人｛ひと｝がいますから。
M: お酒｛さけ｝を飲｛の｝んだのは、電車｛でんしゃ｝を降｛お｝りてからですから。
F: じゃ、お酒を飲んだ所じゃないんですか。
M: 友達｛ともだち｝がカバンを忘｛わす｝れて、注意｛ちゅうい｝したくらいですから。
F: その後どうしました？
...

I'm not sure I get the last phrase correctly. "It's because my friend forgot (his?) bag and I took care (of it?)." It doesn't seem to answer the question being asked (it's the man's bag that is lost, not his friend's). Yet the police officer seems happy with it and continues with another question.


texts: In this particular sentence is 間 and 間に interchangeable?

texts:
I'm studying for the N3 from Kanzen textbook and I came across this question

  私は夏休みの(    )、アメリカの友達の家にいた。

there are three choices: 間、間に、中で

the answer they consider it as the right one is 間.
what was I thinking is that it might be interchangeable and both are correct because you are either spend the whole summer vacation at your friend's house or some time of the summer vacation? isn't it right?


texts: What is the difference between 限る and 限定する?

texts: 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," in different contexts). But I'm trying to figure out which one is more commonly used for "to limit" or "to restrict." When should I use 限定する? When should I use 限る? Is one more formal than the other? What's the nuances here?


texts: In what situation can I use ~かい (for interrogative question)?

texts:
One day, I asked my japanese friend how I could invite some friends to eat.
He said
 "一緒に食べに行くかい？"

I know that we could also say:

行きましょうか（行こうか）？
行きませんか（行かない）？
行きますか（行くの）？

but I got interested in why he used "kai".
I'd like to know others situations that japanese people use "kai"


texts: Does "軽い勉強" mean "studies that are not important" or "studies that are easy"?

texts:
Which of these expresses the meaning "軽い勉強"?

"軽い勉強" is really not a natural word pairing. "軽い勉強" just sounds weird?
"皆んなは電子辞書によって漢字を調べるので、部首の勉強は軽い勉強になっています。"
(Because people these days use electronic dictionaries to look-up kanji, studying radicals is not important.)
"その新発売のアプリを使えば、部首の勉強は軽くなります。"
(If you use that new application, the study of radicals becomes much easier to do.)


texts: ちりと化すぞ - What is the function of particle と?

texts:
Could someone explain to me the function of the particle と in this case?

ちりと化すぞ

ありがとうございます。


texts: How to pronounce 繁栄 han'ei? Is there a glottal stop between the two syllables? Is it //haɴʔeː//, //haɴeː//, //haŋʔeː// or //haŋeː//?


texts: Difference between 獣｛しし｝ and 野獣｛やじゅう｝ (beast)

texts:
I learnt the words 獣{しし} and 野獣{やじゅう} and their definitions look too similar. Can someone explain me the difference between them?

While searching more for beast words, I also found that 獣 could also be spelt けもの or けだもの (also written in katakana　ケダモノ).


texts:
I have written the below sentence to say that "due to feedback on A, fixes are required in B also, so we will do the required modifications'.

  Aのフィードバックを確認致しました上、それに応じてBにも修正する箇所が発生しましたので、当該修正に対応させて頂きます。

Is 確認致しました上 incorrect here?
I am trying to say "Upon checking X, we found that Y needs to be fixed as well'


texts:
what's the difference between ところで and ちなみに ?

Are they always/often/seldom interchangeable?


texts: What is the word for the cleaning alcohol used by employees to clean hands in 7 Eleven?

texts:
I tried asking:

Alcohol arimasu ka?

But they seemed confused and finally one person gave me the cleaning spray for hands that's on the counter and that they use before handling food. I asked what it was called in Japanese and they said Shokudo, but then I look that up and it translates to "poison"


texts: How to say "I think" if there is more than one sentence.

texts:
So usually when saying 'I think' you use 'と思います' but that is normally used with a single sentence like '美味しかったと思います。' But how do you say 'I think' when you have multiple sentences? For example I am trying to say.

  'Is marriage or work more important for them?' If marriage is more important, they should get married. If work is more important, they should not get married and work, I think.'

I have got this so far (I know that it is very bad so I'm sorry about it, I haven't done many constructions like this before.)

  この人のために、結婚か仕事は一番大切ですか。結婚は一番大切なら、結婚します。仕事は一番大切なら、結婚をしませんしはたらきます。

(I'm sorry I know this paragraph is a grammatical mess.) I am answering a question so I would like to add 'I think' so it doesn't sound like I am saying she should do this for certain.


texts: te-form without a final verb and its usage as a conditional

texts:
歩いて二十分ほどのところにある川原です。

It's a riverbank about twenty minutes away by foot.

I have a couple of questions with the usage of 歩いて here:

The usage of the te-form without an auxiliary verb (e.g. 歩いていく) or another verb eventually finishing the clause feels strange. Is there another verb implied but omitted, i.e.「歩いて二十分ほどかかるところにある川原です。」?
It also seems strange for the te-form to be something like a conditional form here (if we walk it's twenty minutes). Would 「歩けば二十分ほどのところにある川原です。」 also work?


texts: How do attendance checklists in Japan deal with multiple possible name readings?

texts:
Even though there are several recurring, easily guessable family name readings ([田中]{たなか｝、佐藤｛さとう｝、田村｛たむら｝) in Japanese, there are usually many possible readings to people's names Kanji, especially first names (良 could be　あきら,　りょう, まこと etc).

How do attendance checks in school classes deal with this one issue? Are students' names written in Kanji only, so that teachers have to ask the students with unusual/obscure names on how to pronounce them?


texts: How can I differentiate between "risk" and "danger" in Japanese?

texts:
I wanted to know how to say "risk" in Japanese, so I looked it up, and found that most dictionaries translate "risk" as 「[危険]{きけん}」.  To me, [危険]{きけん} means "danger", which is different.

Though, to be honest, when I thought of this, I realized that even in English, the difference is subtle. The two words feel very different, but I had to look on the net to be really sure of what that difference is.

As I see it now, "risk" is about possibility of danger. Danger is a certainty that you either enter into or don't.

So, if there is a sign that says "Danger, do not step on third rail", you know for sure if you step on the third rail, you get electrocuted. No two ways about it.

However, if you hear on the news that there is ice on the roads, and so it is "risky" to go out driving, you may or may not encounter ice, and it may or may not be a problem.

So, as far as I translate it in Japanese,　[危険]{きけん} is definite danger (correct me if I'm wrong about that). If I see a sign that says 「[危険]{きけん}　ー　[入]{はい}らないでください」, I expect that if I enter, something definitely dangerous will occur.

If I wanted to express "risk" in Japanese, is there a word I can use? Do I have to say something like 「[危険]{きけん}の[可能性]{かのうせい}」?

Specifically, the kind of situation I imagine this in is financial risk. Like in a business meeting where I'd want to say "I would rather not take on that risk."

Lastly, I know I could maybe use リスク, but using katakana makes me sad.


texts: How Are Verbs Taught to Native Japanese Speakers?

texts: I've had two Japanese professors so far, and they have both split verbs into two groups for teaching English-speakers: they call godan verbs u-verbs and ichidan verbs ru-verbs. I never really liked these terms because, for one thing, a verb can end in -ru without being a -ru verb. The groups just seemed inconsistent, even though I knew what they were meant to represent. I always knew the verbs by godan, kami-ichidan, and shimo-ichidan because I came across the terms on my own. Do native Japanese speakers refer to verbs exclusively as godan/ichidan, or are those terms basically only known by linguists while most people use some other term to describe them? Is that how they are taught in schools/would any given native speaker know those terms?


texts:
I found this sentence in a book for kids.

  ライオンがずぶ濡れのヤギを見ました。ライオンはヤギに『うちに入って、雨やどりをしないか』と声をかけました。

There are many meanings on the internet but i can't quite understand its meaning.

Thank you all :)


texts: What is the difference between 大事 (daiji) and 大切 (taisetsu)?

texts:
These are two words that seem like they are basically interchangeable at most levels, as they generally are. The difference between them appears to be small, but what is the difference, if one exists? I feel like there are certain situations in which you would use 大事 and certain situations in which you would use 大切. For example, I would associate 大切 with sentimental things because of the 切 in it that comes from 切ない, things like memories, or a present that someone gave you, whereas I would associate 大事 with things that are of pressing importance, closer to 重要. But this does not appear to be the case, as I occasionally see 大切 used where I would normally expect 大事, like 大切なお知らせ, with more of a feeling of 緊急 or urgency. There are sources here and here which address this, but they both arrive at the same wiggly uncertain feeling that 大切 is more emotional and 大事 is more about urgency while admitting that in just about any situation the two can be used interchangeably.

大辞林 isn't much help on the subject. For both it says 重要であるさま, and in 大事 it includes 大切に扱う and in 大切 it includes 大事にする. The only hint I can get from the dictionary entry is in the following for 大切:

  大切

  丁寧に扱って、大事にするさま。「本を―にする」「命を―にする」

And in the following for 大事:

  大事

  重要で欠くことのできないさま。ある物事の存否にかかわるさま。「―な用を忘れていた」「今が―な時期だ」

This lends something to the idea of 大切 as a more 'polite' form of importance while 大事 is more about the concept that something is fundamentally necessary and in that regard important. However both of the entries generally seem to be nearly the same with different wording.

Is there a practical difference, and if so, what is it? Does using one over the other have any impact on the actual meaning of a sentence? When can they not be used interchangeably (outside of set phrases like お大事に)?


texts: Word lists/sources for pitch accent in Middle Japanese

texts: Is there anywhere I can find a list of words and what their reconstructed pitches were in Middle Japanese? Or especially what words we have tone dot information on (with a preference for the oldest forms)? The more words I could get the better, but any help would be appreciated. I've already tried to look for resources but have only found a few words for any given class.


texts: Choosing correct response to 何か質問はありませんか？ (Nanika shitsumon wa arimasenka?)

texts:
What is the correct response to the question:

  何か質問はありませんか？ (Nanika shitsumon wa arimasenka?)

Available options are:

  はい、そうです。 (Hai sou desu.)
  はい、ありません。 (Hai arimasen.)
  いいえ、あります。 (iie arimasu.)

Why is #2 the correct answer?

I heard this question in a jlpt practice test.


texts:
こいつが小さい頃、遊園地で激し目なのばっか乗せて回ったからだ。

This part gives me trouble. What does 激し目 mean? What about なのばっか and 乗せて回る?

Context: he's explaining why his son doesn't like planes.


texts:
What would you say is the difference between:

  君にアホだと言う

And

  君をアホだと呼ぶ

I saw there are some similar questions about this topic, but I think none answers this especific matter.
Thanks


texts: Is it possible to preserve the literary style of this English passage in Japanese by rearranging the prepositional phrases?

texts:
Given the following English:

  "A woman's torso, its skin a deathly purple, sat atop an immense arachnid thorax."

It's possible to rearrange the prepositional phrases and still have a grammatically correct English sentence. For example:

  "Its skin a deathly purple, a woman's torso sat atop an immense arachnid thorax."

Is perfectly fine, likewise:

  "A woman's torso sat atop an immense arachnid thorax, its skin a deathly purple."

Is also correct (though in this case it might become a little unclear if the spider thorax is purple or the woman's torso, or the monster as a whole).

From a literary standpoint, this could easily be used if, for example, the author wanted to draw the reader's attention to different parts of the creature at different times, or, in this case, to create the sense that the viewer of the creature is noticing different features in a certain order.

For my example, it's the latter, with some added context:

  "The hulking shadow finally came into sharp focus.
  A woman's torso, its skin a deathly purple, sat atop an immense arachnid thorax."

In this case, the passage gives the impression that as the creature moves from the shadows into the light, the first thing noticed is a woman's torso, then the torso's color, then the fact that the torso is a part of a much larger creature with a spider body.

In translating this into Japanese, is it possible to preserve this literary stylization?

At first, one might think to write something like:

  「死人のような真っ青な肌の女性の胴体が莫大なクモの体と結合された。」

But the problem with this is that it changes the order in which the creature's features become visible (first evoking the image of color, then the image of the woman's torso, then the monster body, rather than the woman's torso, then its color, then the monster body). So then, like in English, is it possible in Japanese to reorder the prepositional phrase "...[its/with] skin a deathly purple..." so that it comes in the middle of the sentence, perhaps something like:

  「女性の胴体が、死人のような真っ青な肌で、莫大なクモ体と結合された。」

But, at least to me, this seems to give the impression that the color is the agent by which the female torso and spider body are joined, which is certainly not the intent of the passage. Perhaps the problem is the use of the particle で?

As an aside, I'm sure that the intent of the English could be preserved by breaking it up into multiple Japanese sentences, but the concern there is it could add too much "baggage" to the passage, possibly making it become purple prose.


texts: Role of 時に in 暗殺は勉強の妨げにならない時にと言ったはずです

texts:
Taken from the manga 暗殺教室.

  暗殺【あんさつ】は勉強【べんきょう】の妨【さまた】げにならない時【とき】にと言【い】ったはずです

My best guess for this sentence would be:

  I'm sure there has been a time I've told you that assassinations shouldn't get in the way of your studies

I'm mostly relating 時に here to 'has been a time' here, but what throws me off is the と after it so would it be included in what he had said before? And the translation just feels a bit weird in general. I'm mostly trying to think of the difference between this sentence and 暗殺は勉強の妨げにならないと言ったはずです with the 時に.

  I'm sure i've told you that assassinations shouldn't get in the way of your studies

Is that right?


texts:
So this is my first time tying to convert handwriting to text, and its left me with a few questions.

Line 6 Char 2;  I would say is likely せ but I've not come across any instance where stroke 3 can extend below stroke 2, nor can I find a Kanji that comes closer. It this correct?

Line 5 char 4; I would say is likely 這, since I can find a font that has the radical 言 with a vertical carrot on top instead of a bar, however that font doesn't have 這. Is changing top bars to carrots common?

Line 4 char13; 石 is really small, so I would expect to radical attached to 亦 but as I fail to find a matching Kanji, I have to assume the tininess is just inconstancy in Kanji size?

Did I get anything else wrong?

The Hand wring is from an authors response to a reader (typed) question.

Text version

As Submitted                       As Corrected By Answers
ブルマ！？                           ブルマ！？
ブルマの魅カですか！？                 ブルマの魅カですか！？
ブルマのすそがちょっとズして              ブルマのすそがちょっとズレて
赤くなったフトモモのブル石亦              赤くなったフトモモのブル石亦
に舌む這ゆせたいです！                 に舌を這わせたいです！
ふせの柔うかい肉体む                   少女の柔らかい肉体を
舌先で、ブルマの尓の息触                舌先で、ブルマの布の感触
む舌のサイドでじながう                   を舌のサイドで感じながら
思う存分舐め回したいです！               思う存分舐め回したいです！


texts: I don't know if it's even called ateji in this case and maybe there's another name for this stylistic device? But I wonder how to translate (to English) custom ateji made by author. For example when furigana indicates something from context, but is not official reading, even as ateji. I don't remember exact examples, but I saw this many times. Only last time I recall is something like: 自分の娘 with name in furigana　(although 自分 works with first two letters of the name, rest is totally different). Meaning is the same, but I wonder if it's even possible to translate it somehow to convey both nouns.


texts: How does 自身 fit into the grammar of this sentence?

texts:
The sentence in question:
しかし、不思議なことに、そう答える親たち自身の幼い時の記憶には、自分がおんぶされていた頃の思い出が強く残っているのです。

For full context:
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/web_tokushu/2018_0521.html?utm_int=news_contents_tokushu_004

My attempt at translation:
"However, about the strange thing, the parents who answered that way, in their memories of the time where they personally were young, there are strong memories left where they were carried on the back themselves."

I wonder how 自身 and 親 are related. The way I parsed this sentence is

...そう答える親たち  |   自身の幼い時の記憶には...
=>
The parents who answered that way
,
concerning the memories of the times where they personally were young...

I wondered wether one could put a の between 親たち and 自身 but I couldn't come up with a meaningful translation for that one. Splitting the sentence into two parts worked quite well for my translation, but I have no idea wether this reflects the actual japanese construction.


texts: What's the difference between 派遣 and 出向?

texts: Both seem to mean borrowing an employee from another company but not exactly the same for both cases.


texts: What form is this. how do you use it and is it only used for proverbs? The closest I know for the verb Isogu is Isoganai or Isogeba, but not Isogaba.


texts:
On Are 終わる and 済ませる synonyms?, there were some questions whether 終わる is used as a transitive verb.

Space ALC seems to have a few results for を終わる, but far more for を終わらせる and を終える. Looking at sense 4 of the Daijisen definition, it does seem 終わる can be used as a transitive verb:

  しまいにする。終える。「会議を―・ります」

My question: How often is 終わる used as a transitive verb and when is it used in such a way compared to 終わらせる and 終える?


texts: How is the long O sound pronounced when followed by を?

texts: For example, 化粧 is read けしょう. When followed by を, how is it pronounced?


texts: 「思う」 in 「その人を私のように　思う」：think v.s. feel

texts:
It seems that 「思う」 can both

be "to think/consider" (actively) as in

「義父母を本当の親のように思うのは無理です」

and "to feel" (passively) as in

「母をなくした子をあわれに思う」.

When reading an article in Asahi Shimbun, I bumped into a 3-line poem in which 「思う」 sounded quite ambiguous to me:

  急行にのって駅を通過するとき

  ベンチに腰かけている人がチラリと見える

  その人を私のように　思う

"I considered the person as myself"？"I felt the person was just like me"? "I thought of the person in my way"? With no context other than the rest two lines, does it really sound ambiguous?


texts: Is this a different accent than Tokyo's?

texts:
A friend of mine wrote：

  　誘えていないんだ。

But aparently it should be written as:

  　誘いていないんか。

I think this is not a typo because he wrote two different sentences, both with え instead of い. Is this wrong or just a local difference.


texts: What is the difference between のに and には?

texts:
I came accross :

行くのに１時間かかる。
行くには１時間かかる。

And someone told me I could say :

行くのには１時間かかる。

So I would like to know the difference between all these in details please, thanks


texts:
I've been wondering about the difference between verb stem (e.g. 話) vs. の (e.g. 話すの) nominalizations.

From what i gather, both nominalizations refer to different things. It seems the verb stems refer to the objects involved in the doing (like those used in を). For example, life in relation to living (暮らし in relation to 暮らす) and speech in relation to speaking (話 vs. 話す).

While の refers to the act itself (described by the verb). So, for example, (as I have a sore throat), 話すのは難しい。(i.e. the act of speaking is difficult).

Am I right about this? Thanks!


texts: What is the difference between が and を when using verbs?

texts:
In this anime-esque example, which is correct?:

私はあなたが殺す
私はあなたを殺す

And why?
Because I’ve heard it used with number • 2 • を (wo), but other verbs seem to always use が, for example:
「私はエミリアが好きです」
Is 好き a noun in this context?


texts:
Here is the sentence including the word.

ふざけんじゃねえよ　パンチに理{り}屈{くつ}なんざ無{む}用{よう}だい!


texts: what does いたまえ mean and how was it conjugated?

texts:
I was wondering what does いたまえ mean
I really don't know the main word when I searched and I don't know how it was conjugated
this sentence was from oregairu season 1 ep 4 near the start
好きな者達と組んでもらうから そのつもりでいたまえ


texts: Special meaning of 洋彫り vs (入れ墨 and タトゥー)?

texts:
洋彫り、 入れ墨、 タトゥー are 3 different ways to say "tattoo" with different nuance. I understand the specialness of 入れ墨 to Japanese history and culture.

Because of the katakana, of course "タトゥー" means the kind of tattoo that is the fad happening in the USA these days.

But, what about "洋彫り"? The first character "洋" means "Western". As a Japanese person, when you hear "洋彫り" what does that mean (feel)? Exact same as "タトゥー"?


texts:
According to Jparser it means

to carry on shoulder

to bear (burden)

to shoulder (gun)

I'm not sure if this is correct or not

Can you give me a few sentences?

Also is this a conjugation form ?


texts: Does Japanese have an original word for banana besides the loanword バナナ?

texts:
I see banana be written バナナ so since it's katakana I guess they imported it from English or Spanish where it's written the same.

But does Japanese have an original word for bananas?

I guess that if bananas didn't exist in Japan before fluid contact with the western world there isn't an original word, but is this so? I've read on the Internet that Japan produces a small fraction of the bananas it consumes, so bananas could have always existed in Japan I suppose?


texts: What are the guidelines of omitting particles?

texts:
I've recently discovered that certain particles could be omitted from a Japanese sentence (to help make it shorter), and still preserve the original meaning. Unfortunately, most resources about this topic that I've looked at are vague at best; and some even contradict each other!

This question is really a few sub questions (but I really don't think each one deserves its own thread since they're so closely related.) The answers don't have to be too detailed; just general points are fine. Anyways, the things I'd like to know are:

Which particles can be omitted from sentences?
Does the omission of particles make a sentence informal/impolite?
When can particles be dropped? (e.g. How can you decide that it's okay both socially and grammatically)
Can multiple particles be dropped in a single sentence?

I hope someone can shed some light on this subject. Thanks! :)


texts:
Could you please explain the difference in meaning between 設計｛せっけい｝ and 提案｛ていあん｝? Could they be interchangeable to mean "to suggest"?
Thank you in advance.


texts: I've always thought that 「横」 in 「横になる」 only refers to the fact that you're lying as opposed to standing (so you're now horizontal from the point of view of a standing person), regardless of your exact position. But when I search for 「横になる」 in Google Images I mainly get pictures of people lying on their side. Does the expression imply that position? Can I 「横になる」 on my back, on my stomach, or in some other way?


texts: What methods/systems for finding kanji or entering them on a PC tend to be faster than others?

texts:
When I see a kanji or a word consisting of multiple kanji somewhere, I want to enter them into a computer so that I can search for it and translate it.

Are there any methods or "systems" that allow faster input and search of a kanji? I'm asking about methodology, not any specific tool.

Some sort of auto-complete search, that allows searching for kanji by splitting them into parts or radicals, or something like the SKIP system, which I am currently learning how to use.


texts:
みなさん、こんにちは！

So, I am a beginner. I have just started reading my first manga in Japanese, 鬼滅の刃, and I've encountered a sentence which I don't really understand the grammar for. Here it is:

  丸腰{まるごし}であるのを悟{さと}られないよう振{ふ}りかぶった体勢{たいせい}で手元{てもと}を隠{かく}す

I've understood it to mean roughly:

  He hid his grip so that I would not realize that he was unarmed.

which makes sense in context. The grammar that confuses me is the usage of 「よう」 without any particle afterwards. I am familiar with 「ように」 and 「ような」 but I am not quite sure if I am missing something here.

Was 「に」 simply omitted in the sentence above? If that is the case, is such usage common or is it a more dated style?

Here's the page in question with some extra dialog: https://i.imgur.com/q5r9GaE.png


texts: What does "ぼうし" mean in "帰り道を照らしたのは 思い出のかげぼうし"

texts:
The words are from the popular song, "Paprika". The sentence, "帰り道を照らしたのは 思い出のかげぼうし" is translated as, "A shadow of memories lights up the way home." I would like to know if this translation is accurate.

Also, I am a bit confused by the use of "ぼうし" since I found that it means "hat"!


texts:
Somewhat cryptic title, but a simple question.

  I start with the (logical?) assumption that kanji makes writing Japanese shorter than using romaji. How shorter is it compared to English written in Latin script, on average? For example, how many pages would an average 100 page book in English (Latin) have in Japanese (kanji+kana)?

Are there some studies concerning this topic?


texts: How can I translate Romaji text to English?

texts:
I have a block of Japanese-language text that has been transliterated to Romaji that I would like to translate to English.  They are lyrics to a song.

I have very little experience with the Japanese language.

I am looking for some pointers on how I can achieve this.


texts:
1) Does this mean "redhead woman"? 赤毛の女性
I read that 女性 is quite formal and use more like "female". So is it possible to use it in this context or should I use another word for "woman"?

2) How to write dedication: "For my beloved redheaded woman"
(not wife, just woman)

Thanks a lot!!!!


texts:
The speaker has just started his new job at a bakery and one of his co-workers is worried that he is being asked to do something that is too dangerous for newcomers by one of his other co-workers.
Person a「もう……新人だからって何でも言うこと聞くのは間違っていると思います。新人に窯出しは危険ですよ」
Person b「でも、下手に他の作業やっても場が混乱するからさ。最初は言われたとおりにやるしかないって」
Person a「私、体育会系のノリって嫌いなんです。根性だけで何でも済ませてたらいつか大ケガするじゃないですか」
Person b「でもメガネくん、あれで一応俺には気を使ってくれているみたいでさ」
Person b 「オーブンを触るときは、大声出してるときでもちゃんと見ててくれるんだよ」
Person a「先輩って、変な人ですね。私なら仕事でもあれだけ言われたら怒ります」
Person b「大丈夫、適度に言い返してガス抜きしてるから」
I am not sure how to parse the bolded sentence of this exchange, and the subjects of the individuals parts. I think that the subject of オーブンを触る is the speaker, and ちゃんと見ててくれる is メガネくん, however I am not sure for 大声出してる. Part of what is confusing me is that there are two occurrences of とき. Is the following the correct way to understand this sentence:
When I'm touching the oven, he watches me properly, even when he is shouting/raising his voice.


texts: Can a 読点{とうてん} ("comma") join two complete sentences?

texts:
Can 、 join two complete sentences?  In other words, can 、 replace 。?

I thought it could, but in this answer, user1205935 seems to suggest that it cannot.  (Rather than ask about it in a comment, I decided to make a separate question about it.)

Here are a pair of examples:

Aと言う。Bと言う。
Aと言う、Bと言う。

Is example 2 ungrammatical?


texts:
Hello im reading a comic where a girl is trying to get a guy to come to school, the guy brushes it off and replies　俺はコエーぞさっさと帰れ. From intuition, im getting the vibe of "Don't bother ( Ill pass), go home/ get lost" But what exactly does コエーぞ mean here. 怖い or かわいそう come to mind.

Thanks


texts: What is the difference between 酒 and お酒?

texts: I know that adding お makes it honorific, but I want to know how they're used differently.


texts: Use of こと in the following sentence with 果たしたこと

texts:
そのことで日本のだれに何をいわれようが、女房が宇宙任務を果たしたことには変わりがなかったのだ。

I'm not sure what role こと plays in this sentence. I heard that it sometimes means like a rule, or something that must be done.

My nearest guess here as to a translation here is:

  No matter what anyone in Japan would have said, the fact that my wife managed to become and astronaut would not change.


texts: 記する｛きする｝、 記す｛きす｝、記す｛しるす｝ - how do I use and/or differentiate between them?

texts:
For instance, here:

  碑文に記されているところによれば

according to the inscription on the tombstone

It's listed under 記する｛きする｝. Why?


texts:
Given that 気分 is primarily a word with a psychological meaning I find the use of 気分が悪い to refer to physical illness a bit confusing.
If I just say 今日は気分が悪い, with no further context, will the listener infer that I am feeling physically unwell, or that I am in a bad mood?
If there is an ambiguity is there a way to resolve it without explaining the reason for the 気分? I guess I could use 機嫌が悪い instead to unambiguously talk about my mood. Is there an equivalent for physical health?
This post, is related but doesn't quite answer my question.
Edit
Apparently 機嫌が悪い is not used to refer to oneself. Could the answer please include an appropriate expression to describe ones own mood?


texts: Help with constructing "yesterday I took a nap for a half hour" in Japanese

texts:
I tried (at least) to construct a sentence. However, when I showed it to a native-speaker and asked if it was correct they did not understand. But I can't see what is wrong with it...

  昨日時半間で昼寝しました。

What I tried to say:

  Yesterday I took a nap for an half hour.

Is this sentence incomprehensible?


texts: Do you read the 一片 in「一片の雲」as ひとひら or いっぺん?

texts:
I found the sentence
"A cloud was sailing in the sky" here :

空に一片の雲が浮かんでいた。

How is it pronounced?

そら に ひとひら の くも が うかんで いた。

そら に いっぺん の くも が うかんで いた。

I do not know whether in Japanese a cloud is a petal or a slice.

一片【ひとひら】：leaf; petal; piece of paper; snowflake; something flat and thin

一片【いっぺん】：(a) slice; (a) piece

雲 【くも】：cloud

浮く 【うく】：to float


texts: What's the difference between としたところで and　にしたところで and how to use it in a "positive" way

texts:
「A に/としたところで　B」 is really confusing me.
According to my textbook the difference seems to be that にしたところで is used with nouns while everything else takes としたところで。
According to this website, however, there is no such restriction but they do state that there is a small difference in meaning which unfortunately they do not explain.
The found an answer on another website where the explanation went along the lines

にしたところで　= even if A is the case, you shouldn't do be/B is not possible
としたところで　₌ however much you do A, B is not possible<

That sounds like a pretty big difference my book/websites should mention. Is it then correct?
Also on the first website mentioned above they state that there are exceptions where B doesn't express some kind of incompetence or meaninglessness. One sentence I think fits the description would be

「一つの言葉にしたって、聞く側によって意味は変わる。」<

Which I would translate with
"Depending on who is listening even a single word can change the meaning".
But if the translation is more or less correct, it would be quite different from the meaning above, wouldn't it?


texts:
お母さんが頭を下げて試供品を受け取るのと、まる子がぴたりとさわぐのをやめるのは同時だった。
  Mother bowed, and when she took the free sample, at the same time Maruko suddenly stopped making a racket.

What is the purpose of the の in bold in this sentence? Is it like the の in のだ i.e. "It was when mother took the free sample that ..."? Is the meaning changed if I remove の?


texts: て versus combining-form for joining clauses

texts:
Is there a difference between these two sentences

  昨日はビールを飲んでパイを食べました。

  昨日はビールを飲みパイを食べました。

More generally, when should I choose one form over the other?
Thanks.


texts:
would this be 〜なくていい？

I don’t have to study - 勉強しなくていい？


texts: Causative form and willingness of the cast

texts:
According to "A dictionary of basic Japanese grammar" pg. 389 (on the choice between に and を particles with causative form)

  When ni is used, the causee has taken an action intentionally.

I have trouble understanding that, as they give an example of

  父は私を(not に) むりやりパーティーへ行かせた。

Supposedly に is ungrammatical in this situation as the subject did not intend to go to the party. But aren't the vast majority of cases where you want to make someone do sth. involuntary? At the same time, in the Genki II textbook (second ed. pg. 234-236) there are examples of sentences using "に" where it is implied that a person made someone do sth. against their intention, like

  お母さんは子供に本を読ませました

So my question is what are the actual rules of using に with causative verbs.


texts: Question on mnemonic device for characters such as 恋, 変, and 湾

texts:
I am currently studying kanji by using a number of sites, some of which provide mnemonics to aid in learning. While not a specific radical per se (I think), the top portions of the following characters, 恋, 変, and 湾 are often thought of as a simplification of the character for red: 赤. Thus there are mnemonics provided for kanji like those mentioned that use this idea of "red."
However, http://www.kanjinetworks.com states that the etymology of this (quasi-)radical is as follows:

䜌 (Type 1 Phonetic) is 絲 (糸 thread doubled, a character now subsumed in 糸) + 言 words (in its original sense of making verbal distinctions → distinguish) → make tangled threads distinct by stretching and untangling them.

In other words, rather than "red,"  it is in fact a simplification of an archaic character related to the "thread" radical, 糸.
I am interested to know if this is correct, and how native Japanese perceive or conceptualize this (quasi-)radical--as being related to 糸, 赤 or something altogether different.
For example, here is the whole entry from the site on the kanji 変 :

変 (9)       ヘン      か（える・わる）        Formerly 變
As per 䜌 (Type 5 Phonetic) as described in 恋 (tangled) + 攵 action indicator → an attempt to untangle a volatile situation, that leads to change → unusual; unusual/wondrous event; political event; internal disturbance.


texts: I hear 別に used as "not in particular", did this usage come about just directly from the meaning of "separately"? So when used, it means that someone has a separate interest, like, etc. and hence they don't particularly have the interest, or share the like?


texts: What's the difference between 「〜を通{とお}して」 and 「〜を通{つう}じて」？

texts:
I understand both can mean "by means of, through, throughout", but I'm sure there's a difference in nuance here.

Could someone help explain this?


texts:
目立つ事を恐れ、一緒でなければいけないという日本人が確実に減ってきているのです。
The strong feelings that Japanese have of being afraid of standing out and everybody having to do things together are starting to become less prominent.

To better understand this sentence, I tried to translate it myself more literally, and came up with this:

The "being afraid of standing out, always having to do things together " kind of Japanese person is definitely starting to decrease.

I am wondering if my interpretation of 確実 is correct. I usually know it as "certainly" and I guess in the original translation it kind of got spread towards "prominent". I'm also wondering if the 減ってきているのです could have been written as 減ってきています。Does the のです add meaning to the sentence?
I'm not sure if these kind of questions are discouraged on this site, so please tell me if I'm out of line.


texts: Does the following sentence mean "should not have"?

texts:
I have the following passage

携帯電話なんて持つんじゃなかった
勝手に無断外泊を続けてるのは　こっちなのにメール一本くれないハチがますます勝手な女に思えてイラ立った
ただの通信手段の機械に人の絆の強さを試されたくなんかないのに

One professional translation of this passage translates the first sentence as "I should have never bought something like a mobile phone". I don't really see how this can be understood, for me it seems like it should be something like "I didn't have a mobile phone with me" (which clashes with the next sentence however).
If anyone could explain this translation for me, I would really appreciate it. Thanks for any help.


texts: How do I turn a phrase into an adjective

texts:
日本語が分からない人
Is a phrase that means a man who doesn't understand japanese but how does this grammar work I mean you do I turn a whole phrase into an adjective do I have to but the inter phrase and then add a noun?


texts: Equivalent of saying "I think, ..." for when you're not 100% sure of what you say?

texts:
皆さん、こんばんは！

What would a good equivalent for saying "I think, ..." be in 日本語?

Like, if you wanted to say "I think (it's) not from here" and started with...

ここからじゃないですな。

What could you do to this, or similar sentences, to add a aura of admitted uncertainty to it?


texts: What conjugation is included in 恥ずかしながら?

texts: What conjugation rules are applied in 恥ずかしながら?


texts: Why does 丈夫 and 大丈夫 mean what they mean?

texts:
Looking at the individual kanji according to a dictionary:
丈 means height, stature, length
夫 means husband, man
大 means big, great

They seem unrelated to what these words using the kanji mean:
丈夫 means healthy, strong
大丈夫 means safe, all right, okay

How did these words end up with these meanings?


texts: Use of Dash or Hyphen in Telephone Numbers

texts:
If reading out a telephone number

e.g. 123-456789

Denwa bangō wa ichi ni san - yon go roku nana hachi kyū desu

What is the dash / hyphen called? Is it spoken? If so how is it pronounced or how do you write it?


texts: What is the meaning of 贅沢 in this sentence?

texts:
Context: the writer is talking about going to a cinema that has just opened near her house.

  朝早く行くと、貸し切り状態なんていう時もあるのでテンションが上がります！
  ただ…朝早く観に行く時は確実に徹夜明けなんですけどね（笑）最高の贅沢です♡

Why is going to the cinema early in the morning after staying up all night a luxury? Does 贅沢 have a different nuance here? Thank you for your help!


texts:
I came across a sentence recently which uses the word (or "words", I'm unsure) そつなく and was wondering at what exactly it means and how it is used, as I can't find it described as a structure anywhere and searching it on jisho.org comes up with the unhelpful translation of a "slip up" and the verb "cry" or "bird song".

The sentence is:

さまざまな才能に恵まれて、なんでもそつなくこなす姉にとって、平々凡々たる俺の存在はひどく許せないものらしい。

And is translated as:
For my multi-talented sister, able do anything with ease, it seems that my commonplace self is something whose existence she finds very hard to forgive.

I assume the そつなく part means "with ease" but I was hoping someone could explain to me what words this is derived from whether it is a separate structure, or just an idiom, and how it fits into the sentence structurally? (as my googling hasn't turned up much that is helpful.)


texts: What's the difference between どうされましたか and どうなさいましたか?


texts:
What's the difference between 感謝している and 感謝する? Looking at http://www.tanos.co.uk/jlpt/skills/vocab/sentences/?vocabid=85961 , I get the impression that for the word 感謝, it is not as simple as one being the continuous tense and the other, the present tense. From the link, it seems that both has the meaning of "I am grateful" (in the state of being grateful), and that means both is in continuous tense rather than present. Sounds to me like 感謝する does not/cannot/will not mean "I will be grateful". A more concrete example:

食べ物に感謝する and　食べ物に感謝している both means "I am grateful for the food". The former cannot mean "I will be grateful for the food" and can only ever mean "I am grateful for the food"


texts: Existence of Transitive/intransitive pairs

texts:
I searched for the answer for this specific question of mine, but couldn't find it. So I'm sorry If I duplicated some thread.

I was reading some stuff here about 自動詞 and 他動詞 and start wondering if all verbs in japanese come in transitive/intransitive pairs like 付く/付ける.

Is this true?


texts: Why is 持っている often translated as "have", even though it means carrying?

texts:
I thought that ある was used for ownership and 持つ/持っている meant that you were carrying or holding something.

For example:

  私にはコンピューターがある

  I have a computer

  私はコンピューターを持っている

  I'm holding a computer

Trouble is that the latter is also frequently translated as "I have a computer". I asked a native, and they said that they'll often use 持っている for ownership even if they're not/can't hold it (e.g. "車を持っているじゃん？"). The English course on Japanese Duolingo does this, and I've seen manga translate it this way as well. Is this idiomatic language that English doesn't have one word to encapsulate?


texts: Using に conjunctively to mean "In addition"

texts:
I think this topic is also addressed in this post, but it doesn't address how に works outside of contexts where the speaker is trying to "trying to think of/recall things". I'd like someone to explain how に is used conjunctively in objective contexts. I've seen examples of sentences where に is used conjunctively when the speaker is narrating a story, which (I think) it wouldn't make sense to think that the narrator is "trying to remember" these nouns.
One example I found in a book I was reading is:

そんなロレンスとホロが入った店は、小さな宿に併設の酒場だ。
 The store that Lawrence and Holo entered was a small inn combined with a bar.

I think I might be reading this wrong, and the する after 併設 is just omitted in this sentence. In that case, I assume に is just marking the object of the する verb.


texts: What does ま、いっか。めんどくさいし mean?

texts:
I have trouble with interpreting the following sentence:

  ま、いっか。めんどくさいし

It has to do with something being troublesome.


texts: Question about exact meaning of causative sentence

texts:
I'm trying to read this manga (風光る) for practice and I came across this short sentence

  今、沖田や藤堂に立合わせています。 (see image below)

In the English fan translation it is translated incorrectly to

  Now they're getting presented to Okita and Toudou.

I think they confused 立ち合う with 立ち会う. Even if it was 立ち会う (to be present, to be witness to), it wouldn't make any sense (to me at least) to translate it like this. So that translation isn't very useful.

Anyway, the part with the に particle is what I'm confused about. The speaker (Hijikata) is either letting or making someone face off in a match (which we see after two pages), but I don't know if that someone is the new recruits or Toudou and Okita (and others). Is the に particle marking the person that someone is facing off against or is it marking the person who is actively facing off against someone else (the doer) here? I guess it's not really crucial to get the gist of the sentence, but I would still like to make sure what the exact meaning is.

I think it's probably the former, so something like:

  Now I'm letting (the new recruits) face off against Toudou and Okita (and others).

The other option is:

  Now I'm letting Toudou and Okita (and others) face off against (the new recruits).


texts: Why is the sentence, "毎日、AからＢに通います。" incorrect?

texts:
In the exam, my sentence was corrected from,

  毎日、A から B に通います。

to,

  毎日、A から B に通っています。

...and no explanation was made. I am still very confused.


texts:
In the following sentence

  イタリアの理論物理学者フェルミ（Enrico Fermi ）は，この現象を，原子核の崩壊を引き起こす力と，力を媒介する未知の粒子の存在を仮定することで説明しようとした。

I guess the と followed by a comma means an exhaustive and. But an and of what? I guess of 粒子. Are there grammatical rules to determine this? Or is it just semantics?


texts: What conjugation of 願う is 願わくば, and what does it mean here?

texts:
This is my first post here, I'm sorry if I didn't follow any formatting or posting rules.

Original sentence, from a character's monologue:

  願わくばこの時間が少しでも長く続くことを。。。

The English translation I have (not mine or official) is

  I wish this moment could last even a little bit longer.....

I was quite confused by this conjugation, so I did some research on this site, and read this answer on how conditionals can be represented as 連用形 + あれば. So is 願わくば a contraction of 願わなくあれば / 願わなければ ?

But the thing I'm more confused about is, why is the negative conditional form used here in the first place? In the plain conditional, this looks something like "If I had to wish for something, it would be for this moment to continue for a little longer", but why the seemingly negative form? (Or is it even negative to begin with?)

Sorry for the double triple-loaded question, but one more thing: is this contraction of the conditional form commonly used? (Like in informal contexts?)

Edit: In case you're wondering why I made these somewhat far-fetched guesses: I guessed negative because of the わ (願う->願わない), and guessed conditional because of the ば (願う->願えば). Sorry >.<

Thank you for your time.


texts: Relative clause confusion: "whose company I am leaving" or "who is leaving the company"

texts:
I came across this one in a study book:

本日、退社することになりました社長を初め皆様には本当にお世話になりました。

The translation reads 'Today I am leaving the company, and I would like to thank not only the President, but everybody.' However wouldn't a literal reading be 'I thanked everyone who is leaving the company, starting with the president'? ie implying that the president and everyone is leaving the company? Would this be more accurate:

本日、退社することになりました私は社長を初め皆様には本当にお世話になりました。

Thank you.


texts: How do Japanese speakers determine the implied topic when none has been mentioned?

texts:
I imagine this is something that Japanese speakers naturally build up as they are exposed and communicate in the language for many years. However, take the following scene:

  「おお、豪華な魚料理だなぁ」

  「港町だけあって魚がやっぱり自慢みたい」- From context this is clearly not referring to the speaker or listener.

  「それと地酒も集まるからそっちも沢山」

  「お酒か……普段はあんまり飲まないけど、それならたまには……」 - Speaker

  「ああ、いただくとしよう」- Speaker

  「それじゃ、かんぱーい」

  (they all get drunk and have a hang over and get woken up the next
  morning)

  「朝ーーーーー！」

  「ほらほら、みんな起きてー！」

  「うう……頭痛い……」- SPeaker

  「私も、です……」- Speaker

  「少し昨日は、飲み過ぎたな……」- Ambiguous? The speaker (at the bare minimum) is saying that they drank too much yesterday, however they could also be saying "We" drank too much. How does one differentiate between these? Would the wording be slightly different or could the same wording be used for I/You/We?

  「普段あまり飲まないからなぁ……加減が分からなくなってしまった」I guess that this is referring to the speaker as it is the same person as before who said they don't drink very much


texts:
How would you politely say that?
When you talk to a stranger, and you don't know the word he just said. Say f.e.:
落札
I understand that you could just say 「落札」の意味は何ですか？ but is there specifically a polite form of って ?

And to take it further, would there be even a Keigo version of って ?


texts: What is the explanation for the archaic attributive particle が becoming a modern subject particle?

texts:
While reading though Haruo Shirane’s Classical Japanese: A Grammar, I came across the following passage:

  が started as an attributive case particle, became a subject particle, and then turned into a conjunctive particle. In the ancient period, the subject case particle did not exist. The typical structure was subject + predicate, as in 花咲く, or subject + adjective, as in 山高し. It was only beginning in the Muromachi period that the pattern 花が咲く and 山が高し, with が marking the subject, became standard.

While this makes sense looking at actual textual examples, I’m finding it difficult to understand the progression. Would anyone be able to explain what is the semantic basis for an attributive particle (or genitive case) taking on the role of subject particle (or nominative case)?

(As an aside, the same section in the same describes the uses of の as a case particle, which all correspond to the uses of が: subject marker, attributive marker, implied nominal, apposition. Is there some explanation as to why there would be two case particles which seem to serve largely the same purpose? And is this the underlying mechanism for the が/の alternation in modern Japanese attributive clauses?)


texts: The "right" way to write Japanese lyrics

texts:
I have been researching many various sites regarding advice for how to properly write lyrics in Japanese.

Some say that you just write what you want;  not even syllabic structure is needed.

On the other hand, I've seen documentation speaking meticulously on the specific ways Japanese lyrics should be written.  It even goes in to a more mathematical, calculating way to view how to write words for Japanese songs.

I wonder if the latter is old-fashioned/customary method compared to a more modern, contemporary method.

Any help, opinion or further advice on this matter would be very appreciated.


texts:
I'm not sure I completely understand the usage of ちょっと前に in this context:

一年ちょっと前に結婚しました.

Does this mean:

"I got married around a year ago" (implies more or less than a year)
"I got married a little over a year ago" (implies unspecified short amount of time MORE than exactly 1 year ago)
"I got married roughly a little over year ago" (implies uncertain time MORE than exactly one year ago)

My original intention was to say:
"I got married a little over a year ago."

Can someone explain to me which is the most accurate translation, and then how to properly express the other two options?

Thank you!


texts: When describing location can ある take more than one に?

texts:
村はずれの山に近い所にある小さな社{やしろ}が、がけくずれで流されたのだ。
  The small shrine located in a place near the mountains on the edge of town had been washed away by a landslide.

I can't decide how to parse the part in bold. I can see two ways:

  1) (山に近い所)にある社
  2) (山に)(近い所に)ある社

For 1) I'm translating as "Shrine located in a place which is near to the mountains." i.e the place is near the mountains but not in the mountains.

For 2) I'm translating as "Shrine which is located in a nearby place, and is located in the mountains." i.e. the nearby place is in the mountains.

Is the sentence ambiguous or is one of these obviously wrong? And why?

I'm guessing at option 1) since I'm not sure you can have the structure AにBにある. But I think many shrines are located in the mountains so 2) seems possible.


texts: Contribution of 気 to the meaning, for example, 勇気 and 勇

texts:
Both 勇気 and 勇 are nouns and mean courage. Does 気 give it a different twist?
Couldn't you say 力と勇 instead of 力と勇気? (meaning power and courage)


texts:
My textbook says the correct structure is

  WHEREにWHOがいる

For example:

  日本にかおるさんがいる

But I've seen some webpages with examples such as:

  かおるさんは日本にいる

So... are they both correct? Do they have different meanings? Is one of them wrong?


texts:
I'm reading a manga in which I've come across the following exchange (for context the second character, B, has just beaten up A in a fight):

A: おのれ　きさまなんぞに...
B: いいや　あたしなんぞに　てめーは敗れるのさ!!

My understanding of なんぞに was always that it could be used similar to "Why", so the first comment it simply something along the lines of "Bastard, idiot, why...", but I've no idea how it then functions in the response from B.


texts: What's the difference between bejitarian and Saishokushugi?

texts:
I have seen vegetarian translated as both bejitarian and Saishokushugi.

bejitarian is obviously an adaptation of vegetarian.

Saishokushugi can be loosely translated as faith to vegetables.

But what's the difference between the two terms and when would you use one over the other?


texts:
So, I was reading this http://alfalfalfa.com/articles/161036.html and I wanted to know what was the meaning of "心を壊す". Is it "to damage one's mind"?

  ポケモンのぬいぐるみ、人の心を壊す

I couldn't find the meaning, so I was trying to guess...


texts:
Why is 建てる in the result clause in the past tense?  The answer from What is the correct usage of conditional and hypothetical? indicates that it should not be in the past.

もしも 私が家を建てたなら
小さな家を建てたでしょう


texts:
Given my understanding, it seems like "どちら" has the exclusive meaning of "which one (of two)" and "どれ" means "which one (of many)". Does どっち include both of these meanings?

Also, do all of these strictly mean which one instead of which ones? Is there a different word to use when you want to say which ones?


texts:
I came across this sentence while reading Osamu Dazai's Ningen Shikkaku. The sentence is pretty long, so I have only included the relevant part.

  あまりに人間を恐怖している人たちは、かえって、もっともっと、おそろしい妖怪を確実にこの眼で見たいと願望するに到る心理、神経質な、ものにおびえ易い人ほど、暴風雨の更に強からん事を祈る心理、ああ、この一群の画家たちは...

When I searched it online, I came across this article on Chiebukuro which says:

  「推量」になりますが、ヨーロッパの言語でいう接続法などに近い用法です。

「ん」 in 「らん」 becomes some kind of guess or conjecture here. But what I do not understand is, what kind of form is 「強から」.

「強か」 is a な-adjective but I am confused as to what the that bold part in the sentence means and how it fits in the overall context of the larger sentence.

Complete sentence for reference:

  あまりに人間を恐怖している人たちは、かえって、もっともっと、おそろしい妖怪を確実にこの眼で見たいと願望するに到る心理、神経質な、ものにおびえ易い人ほど、暴風雨の更に強からん事を祈る心理、ああ、この一群の画家たちは、人間という化け物に傷めつけられ、おびやかされた揚句の果、ついに幻影を信じ、白昼の自然の中に、ありありと妖怪を見たのだ、しかも彼等は、それを道化などでごまかさず、見えたままの表現に努力したのだ、竹一の言うように、敢然と「お化けの絵」をかいてしまったのだ、ここに将来の自分の、仲間がいる、と自分は、涙が出たほどに興奮し、
  「僕も画くよ。お化けの絵を画くよ。地獄の馬を、画くよ」


texts:
I just received an email from a good friend in Japan, who has notably over the past few months been instrumental in connecting me to various people, for some research interviews I've been conducting.

The data collection phase of the research has long been completed, but she has just sent me an email with some additional data attached. Given we haven't communicated for some time (as I've been writing up the results of the research, and the phase of research she was helping with is over), her email starts thus:

  ヘンリー

  ご無沙汰しています。

I'm aware of the meaning of the phrase 「ご無沙汰しています」 -- but how best to respond to it in my reply?

Would a simple 「こちらこそ」 suffice, or would maybe 「私もご無沙汰しています」be better?

I had also considered 「ご無沙汰していますね」 but I don't know if that's got a potentially rude connotation here (i.e. I'm somehow highlighting the lack of communication on her side, rather than agreeing to the plain fact that we've not communicated for a while).

Many thanks! よろしくお願いします。


texts:
政{せい}治{じ}に興{きょう}味{み}がある。I am interested in politics.

What is the purpose of the に particle here? I would have said it with は (As for politics, I have an interest in it) or が (politics is what I have an interest in).

Thanks in advance.


texts: Do all the meanings of 掛ける and 掛かる tally?

texts:
WWWJDIC does not tally their meanings of 掛ける and 掛かる so i find it hard for a beginner like me to properly learn these 2 words..

Do all these meanings of 掛ける and 掛かる tally: (is this list correct):

1a) to hang 地図を掛ける

1b) to be hung 地図が掛かる

2a) to take (time/money) 時間を掛ける

2b) to be taken.. 時間が掛かる

3a) to multiply ２と３を掛ける

3b) to be multiplied２と３が掛かる

4a) to wear (glasses/necklace) ネックレスを掛ける

4b) to be worn.. ネックレスが掛かる

5a) to make a call 電話を掛ける

5b) to be made.. 電話が掛かる

6a) to make an insurance 保険を掛ける

6b) to be made.. 保険が掛かる

7a) to set (engine/alarm) into "on" mode テープレコーダを掛ける

7b) to be set.. テープレコーダが掛かる

8a) to fix (toothache/headache) 頭痛を掛ける

8b) to be fixed.. 頭痛が掛かる

9a) to lock 鍵を掛ける

9b) to be locked.. 鍵が掛かる

10a) to secure (seatbelt) シートベルトを掛ける

10b) to be secured.. シートベルトが掛かる

11a) to apply (salt/toppings) 塩を掛ける

11b) to be applied.. 塩が掛かる

12a) to spread over/around (cloth/dust/tape) テープを掛ける

12b) to be spread.. テープが掛かる

13a) to cast (spell) 魔法を掛ける

13b) to be cast.. 魔法が掛かる

14a) to trick (someone) トムを掛ける

14b) to be tricked.. トムが掛かる

15a) to have a feeling (pity/hope) 情けを掛ける

15b) to be felt.. 情けが掛かる

16a) to present (someone to court / idea to conference) 質問を掛ける

16b) to be presented.. 質問が掛かる

Is it true that the only meaning that is not available in both 掛かる and 掛ける, is:

to depend on (someone/something) 我々が彼の手伝いに掛かる

PS: if some of the example phrases are wrong please correct me thx!

PS: i think i will leave out "standard phrases" out of the discussion, like: 腰を掛ける, 迷惑を掛ける, お目に掛かる


texts: Like any other i-adjective, they can be conjugated but I read a few example sentences of the i-adjective "無い" and I can't find any sentences where it was conjugated.


texts: Liter/100 km or km/liter, which one is used in Japan?

texts:
In America we say the fuel economy of car as miles/gallon (miles per gallon). I know in some countries people use Liter/100 km (liter per 100 km). Some countries use km/Liter (km per liter).

Which format do Japanese people use, L/100 km or km/L?


texts: Can なし be used in response to a binary question?

texts:
I'm trying to have a program I'm working on translate a report with "Yes" and "No" as possible answers to various yes/no questions (of forms like "Is X equal to Y," "Does A exist for B," etc). While the existing phrase bank properly renders "Yes" as 「はい」, it has "No" stored as 「なし」 rather than the 「いいえ」 I would have expected. I know that a common way to answer a question in the negative is to just say the negative form of the question's verb, but is that what's going on here?

Is いいえ the only appropriate (and sufficiently generic) answer available, or is なし also appropriate?


texts: What's the difference between 解く【とく】and 解く【ほどく】?

texts: From what I infer from searching online, 解く【とく】refers to "untying" or solving abstract concepts such as math problems.  解く【ほどく】, on the other hand, relates to untying physical objects like one's shoelaces. If this assumption is correct, in the case of this example 「くっついているものを解き分ける」, the correct 解く to use should be ほどく, right?


texts: Is my translation accurate? 自分の思ってる事『を』人『に』伝えられないだけじゃないんですか…？

texts:
自分{じぶん}の思{おも}ってる事{こと}『を』人{ひと}『に』伝えられないだけじゃないんですか…？

So in this sentence ↑ : 自分{じぶん}の思{おも}ってる is attributive to 事{こと} to create:

"A thing I've been thinking about myself"

Since there's no word order except for emphasis, "a thing I've been thinking about myself" will be the direct object of the verb when it comes up further down the road.

人{ひと}『に』will be the indirect object of that same verb later on.

That verb in question turns out to be 伝えられない, in the passive negative form which according to my dictionary means "to declare" or in this case: "has not been declared".

だけ：only and じゃない: negative...

So:
My translation:
"There's a thing I've been thinking about myself I just have not declared to that person."

For some reason I have a feeling it's not right but it if is that would be pretty awesome as it wasn't an easy sentence.

Source:
https://www.sukima.me/bv/t/blackjackniyoroshiku/v/1/s/4/p/6


texts: "一生懸命な”のニュアンスを説明してもらえませんか。Nuances of 一生懸命な

texts:
一生懸命な彼に申し訳ない気がしました。そこで、私は一度彼と会って面と向かって断ろうと思ったのです。
  'I felt I had to do something so I decided to meet him face to face and tell him I wasn't interested.'

一生懸命を副詞として使ったら 'eagerly, with utmost effort, very hard' という意味になると思います。でも形容詞として使ったらどんなニュアンスになりますか？この例で否定的なニュアンスがあるのか誰か説明してくれませんか？

If 一生懸命 is used as a な-adjective to describe someone, is it usually negative?
In this example, the suitor was overly persistent, so the girl wanted to actively reject him.

Please pardon any mistakes made in my faulty Japanese.


texts: What's the difference between "マグロ" (maguro), "ツナ" (tsuna), and "シーチキン" (shiichikin)?

texts:
It seems that there are (at least) three words for "tuna" in Japanese:

"マグロ" / "鮪" / "まぐろ" (maguro) - Seems to be the native name for the creature and used at least in sushi
"ツナ" (tsuna) - Seems to be from English and used for canned tuna and o-nigiri
"シーチキン" (shiichikin) - Mistakenly read as "chicken" by other gaijin besides me and also seems to mean canned-tuna style as used in o-nigiri, but what is its etymology?


texts:
How do you say, "Do you need an interpreter?" in Japanese?
I put it in google translate and it came up as 通訳が必要ですか. Is this correct? I don't trust google translate lol..


texts: Why is that sometimes I hear kudasai (with d) pronounced as kurasai (a slight r sound)?

texts:
Here's an example:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YMgXlcgj8Y8&t=61s

I'm a Chilean-born Taiwanese, so I'm not sure if my ears are confusing things. Or maybe this is due different Japanese accents?

Or maybe the Japanese "d" is a blit "r" sounding?


texts:
Consider this sentence:

  いつもと変えてたまに外で食事しよう。

This was translated as:

"Let's occasionally change where we go to eat out."

I have two questions:

If いつも means always/usually, I don't understand how that fits into
the translation because たまに expresses "occasionally".
If いつも is an adverb/noun, how is the と particle used in this
sentence?

An explanation of how the grammar works would be appreciated.


texts: What is the difference between 襲う、撃つ、and 襲撃?

texts: Based on their kanjis, they all appear to have the meaning of attack, and I think that is what makes them similar. How does one distinguish their uses? I would also appreciate a (brief) explanation of how the component kanjis of 襲撃 contribute to the meaning of this 熟語.


texts: Is there a functional difference between 優しげ vs 優しい?

texts: I think 優しげ is a な adjective.  Whereas 優しい is an い adjective.  When I look up their meanings, their English translation is essentially kind/gentle, and they seem to be both adjectives modifying something in a clause.  Is there a usage difference between them?


texts: Understanding the abbreviated labels on a Japanese driving license

texts:
I'm attempting to write a guide to understanding what is written on a Japanese Driving License for Wikipedia, but I've reached the limit of my reading comprehension abilities.

Here's a labelled image of the sample license that is used by the National Police Agency in public information literature:

I'm struggling with the abbreviated labels in the left-hand margin for sections 10, 11 and 12, and the list of abbreviated vehicle categories in section 13.

Here is my best effort at translation. Would anyone be kind enough to correct and complete them? It could well be that I've got some of these translations wrong: in particular, I think there might be something about automatic / manual transmission in there.

Next to section 10: 二・小・原
Date of issue of first small motorcycle license

Next to section 11: 他
Date of issue of first non-motorcycle license

Next to section 12: 二種
Date of issue of first motorcycle license

First row of section 13, left-to-right:

大型 Large vehicle
中型 Medium vehicle
普通 Ordinary vehicle
大特 Large special vehicle
大自二 Large motorcycle
普自二 Ordinary motorcycle
小特 Small special vehicle

Second row of section 13, left-to-right:

原付 Moped
け引 Trailer
大二 Large commercial passenger-carrying vehicle
中二 Medium commercial passenger-carrying vehicle
普二 Ordinary commercial passenger-carrying vehicle
大特二 ???
け引二 ???


texts:
I am going through a Genki exercise (Genki 1, page 163) and there is a picture of a man, with questions on the side.
For example, "暇ですか".
Would this usually mean it is asking about the man or yourself?

This is kind of confusing because some of the question do have the topic/context for example "この人" or "ここは".

I do know that Japanese is a context heavy language but who would it usually be directed towards if you said something like "暇ですか" or "頭がいいですか" because to me, it seems almost as likely that if you asked "頭がいいですか" then you would be asking if you yourself are smart.


texts:
その後は特に気にかけることもなく時間がすぎたということです。

I understand it as "After that, without discovering anything new we spent time on it" but I'm really not sure.

context of the sentence:

"足元に黒く光る変わった石が

今回、発見された隕石は６年前の秋、三津村さんが自宅近くの畑で野菜の収穫作業をしていた際に偶然見つけました。
休憩のため腰を下ろそうとした時、足元に黒く光る変わった石があるのに気づき、持ち上げたところ重かったため、「珍しい」と思って持ち帰り、玄関に飾ったということです。
訪ねてきた知人に「隕石じゃないか」と指摘され、磁石を近づけてくっつくことも確認しましたが、その後は特に気にかけることもなく時間がすぎたということです。"


texts: What is the name of grammar that change noun to verb by adding (します)?

texts:
I would like to know the name/Google keyword of the grammar point (to search for further reading on Google).

When you add します to a noun, it become a verb.

仕事 = work (noun)
仕事 します= I work


texts: The role of the particle に in ばかものに考えているに思えた。

texts:
I came across the following sentence:

  ばかものに考えているに思えた。

Which was translated as:

  Seemed to believe in stupid things.

Now, the first に states IN WHAT someone seemed to believe. We can put this one aside. What is the role of the second one? I would expect for the two verbs to be related through a と particle. So can you help me define the meaning in which に connects two verbs like these?