texts:
It is a situation which a boy who is carrying some goods after successfully escaped from chasing by policemen.

Here is the full sentence.

なあ...わらってたんじゃわからねえよ。


texts: Which native speakers would be familiar with the expression [竜頭]{りゅうとう}[蛇尾]{だび}?

texts:
Background: The expression 竜頭蛇尾, which is literally "dragon's head, snake's tail", seems to imply that the front is more impressive than the back.  [EDIT] It seems usage is typically time-like, eg an effort began well but fizzled out towards the end.  (Dictionary links: goo, jisho) It carries a bit of a sense of anti-climax.

I recently saw the phrase in an English article about a computer game (Overwatch) developed by a non-Japanese company (Blizzard), describing how Blizzard appropriated and misused the Japanese expression (in a non-malicious and silly way).  Apparently some Japanese players noticed and have been posting about it. Link to article. But when I mentioned the phrase to one of my friends (a native speaker), they seemed rather confused.  Apparently they had never heard the expression before.

Question: What kinds of contexts (written vs spoken, academic-field-specific, geographic location and age of speaker, etc) would this expression come up in?

Secondary/related questions: Roughly, which native speakers would be familiar with this term, and to what degree is it esoteric?


texts:
I understood the sentence below:

  この面白い話を落語と言い、落語をする人を落語家といいます。

as to be:

  Such interesting stories are known as 落語, and people who tell 落語 are called 落語家.

However, if the meaning is as I have interpreted, what is the grammatical rules with regards to the usage of を in the above? Would it also work if it was simply

  この面白い話「が」落語と言い、落語をする人「が」落語家といいます。

Sentence lifted from Lesson 20 of Genki II.


texts: Meaning of 使えるようになりました

texts:
I came across the following expression and I cannot understand how to translate it
使えるようになりました。

According to Google Translate: "You can now use it". I was wondering how this translation fits. Where is "now" coming from? If I translate literally then it sounds like "Became in a manner of being able to use." Is ようになる part of a set phrase?


texts: When is 死に used to describe something is dead instead of 死んでいる or 死んだ?

texts:
死に馬にむちを打つ    -    beat ［whip, flog］ a dead horse

After reading the sentence above, I was wondering when it's appropriate to use 死に to describe when something(or someone?) is dead instead of using 死んでいる or 死んだ.


texts: Are these two topics in the same sentence?

texts:
For full context:
http://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/easy/k10011273631000/k10011273631000.html

The sentence in question:
水族館は、オウサマペンギンが外で散歩をすることができるのは気温が低くなる冬だけなので、いい運動になると言っています。

My attempt at translation:
Literal:
"Concerning the aquarium, concerning that the penguins can take a walk outside, they say that it becomes a good physical exercise,because there is the alone temperature-lowering-winter."
More elegant:
"The aquarium says that it becomes a good physical exercise that the penguins can talk a walk outside because winter alone is bringing temperature down."

So, First, as the title suggests, I don't really know when two topics are allowed in a japanese sentence. I also don't really know how to handle them, how they relate to each other, wether one topic can be subordinated to the other etc..
I think I understood the sentence contentwise, but I've little idea how the grammar actually works.

Furthermore, probably because there are multiple topics used to build the sentence, there is kind of a lack of transitivity...^^ What confused me the most was 気温が低くなる冬だけなので. I think the ghist of this part is that winter brings down temperatures, which is a good thing for the physical well-being of the penguins. However, 冬 doesn't take direct influence on 気温, but instead it is an attribute of 冬 that expresses "becomes lowering temperature". The problem with hereby is that 低くなる itself is also a bit confusing since 低く is a noun and not an adjective. I can follow this logic in some cases, but in this case its a bit hard because it is not something along the lines of "The swine becomes a steak" (sorry for the bad humor^^) but more along the lines of "The sun becomes dark". This difficulty I have stems from the entry on http://jisho.org/search/%E4%BD%8E%E3%81%8F where 低く is categorized as a noun or suru verb, however the two meanings are no nouns Oo Therefore, my translation doesn't reflect a "NOUN becomes a NOUN" structure but a "NOUN becomes ADJECTIVE" structure. Because of that, I feel like I didn't really understand whats going on in this sentence Oo

I also don't know if I understood the use of だけ correctly. I think that here it is used to express that only through winter such a drop in temperatures can be achieved, at least for a "walk outside" (One could also put the penguins into a cooling chamber for example).


texts:
つくろうとしている

つくる ー To create
している ー Is doing

What is the うと part?


texts: Usage of a clause to modify an い-adjective?

texts:
近所のバーは友達とお酒を飲むのにちょうどいい場所だ。
The neighbourhood bar is a great place to have a drink with friends.

Does one think of the dependent clause 友達とお酒を飲むのに as modifying the い-adjective ちょうどいい (which then modifies 場所), or does it modify the main clause ちょうどいい場所だ ? I'm aware that nouns can be modified by putting a clause in front (e.g. ぼくが食べたりんご), but to my knowledge this doesn't apply to い-adjectives. Perhaps I'm overthinking this.


texts:
It is a situation which a salesperson announces to a group of people to attract them to buy his goods

Here is the full sentence.

ああいう物{もの}の値{ね}うちのわかる決{けつ}断{だん}力{りょく}さえた少{しょう}年{ねん}が日{に}本{ほん}にいるっていうことはだ

Actually, there are 3 text bubbles adjacent to each other in the same panel and I brought only the sentence from the last bubble into the above line.

Below here are the 2 first sentences from those bubbles.

First bubble: いや おそれ いりました!

Second bubble: これだけいる おとなどもが買{か}いしぶって いる中{なか}で あんな子{こ}どもが さっと こづかい はたくなんざ じつに 見{み}上{あ}げた もんですよ


texts: What's the difference between が and の in this sentence?

texts:
On Kana-Boon's スノーグローブ (Snow Globe) song, there are two versions of the same sentence:

君が好きな白い雪になろう
君の好きな白い雪になろう

What is the difference between these two sentences? Does の have a possession meaning, like "Your white snow that you like"?


texts:
I am having trouble translating this sentence because of ても.

  そんなにゲームばかりして、目が悪くなっても知らないわよ。

Does it mean:

  If you only play the game so much, your eyes will get bad even if you don't know.

I am not sure if that translation makes sense or is correct.


texts:
For full context:
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/web_tokushu/2018_0202.html?utm_int=news_contents_news-closeup_002

The sentence in question:
 ところが、八王子隕石の存在は、落下場所となった八王子市内でもほとんど知られていません。

My attempt at translation:
"However, concerning the existence of hachioji meteorite, (the place) in hachioji inner city which became the impact site is practically not known."

I don't know whether I should interprete でも in sense of でも or で+も (で being either the copula or the particle). I settled for the solution visible in my translation where で is the particle indicating location. But this was basically just because I couldnt come up with a better solution ^^


texts: How best to translate 左右対称 in this context?

texts:
For example:

人間の顔は左右対称ではない
A person's face is asymmetrical.

The above is simple, but how about:

漢字の形が左右対称である。

"The shape of the Kanji character is symmetrical."

The problem I have with the above sentence is "symmetrical" and "左右対称" have different meanings, "symmetrical" is similar to "proportional" whereas "左右対称" has the meaning that if you "flip it over" the shape doesn't change (i.e.金、田、山, etc.). I was thinking "mirror-image", but usually you are contrasting one thing to another.

Any suggestions on how to express the meaning 左右対称 in English correctly in the above sentence?


texts:
Referring to the tuna fishing quota:

  今年より約５２％多くなります。  (from a news article)
  今年より約５２％増える。  (made up by me)
  (This) will increase by around 52% compared to this year.

Is there any difference in meaning/feeling between the above two sentences?

How would I say increase to X% rather than increase by X%? Is it just from context? Would the following be correct:

  フォークの生産はtotal outputの５０%増える
  Production of forks will increase to 50% of total output.

(sorry, I don't know how to say 'total output')

But if I just said:

  フォークの生産は５０%増える

Would that mean to 50% or by 50% or is it ambiguous?


texts: Are these forms different? If so, how do they differ? I would appreciate an example, thank you.


texts: I am unable to find an explanation of the 2 distinct terms.


texts:
Earlier today my friend and I were looking for a restaurant that someone had recommended we go to. We couldn't find it, and so my friend suggested I should check again with the person who recommended the place about where it is located.

In telling me to check with my other friend, the Japanese friend I was with said:

  場所を聞いておく。【ばしょを　きいて　おく】

My very loose translation is "you should ask [them] the place."

This is a classic case of what I encounter a lot which is that I get the meaning enough to know what is being asked and how to respond, but I can't claim to understand completely. I don't exactly know what おく is doing here.

I know that おく, usually means "to place", as in to put something in a place and leave it here. However, it also means, "to do in advance".

So I assume it's something like that second meaning being used here, but, if so, do what in advance of what, exactly? Ask my friend in advance of attempting to go to the restaurant a second time? That seems logical, but it also seems like a lot of assumed context and extra information to store in one verb.

What exactly is おく doing when attached to 聞いて?


texts:
I've noticed a grammar pattern recently: 「Ｖ方{ほう}もＶ方{ほう}だ」.  From what I can tell, it always repeats the same verb twice, and it seems like ほう is often written in kana:

行くほうも行くほうだ

And if it's a する verb, usually only する repeats:

質問するほうもするほうです

But I can't find it in any of my reference materials—the dictionaries on my EX-WORD, the Makino et al. grammar dictionaries, or in Martin.  I can find lots of examples online, but my poor brain just can't make sense of them:

作るほうも作るほうだが、
売るほうも売るほうだ。加えて、
買うほうもまた買うほうだと思っていた。
そんなときに全く偶然に入ったお店がこの店だった。
(from a blog post found on Google)

I guess ほう is 方, but I'm not sure how to interpret it or why it repeats.  What does Ｖ方{ほう}もV方{ほう}だ mean?


texts:
I came across the dialog and was puzzling over the sentence
"したことのないことばかり"

（中野さんと大和さんがおみあいをしています。）
中野：大和さんは、お休みの日はなにをされていますか。
大和：ゴルフをしたり美術館を見学したりして、それに絵を書いたり裁縫したりするのです。
中野：わあ、すごいですね。
大和：中野さんは？
中野：私は、パチンコやカラオケをしたりして、時々軽くお酒を飲むのも好きです。
大和：フフフ、私がしたことのないことばかりです。面白いでしょうね。

I think I understand bold part, but is it possible that 大和 replies this sentence instead?

大和：フフフ、私がしなかったことばかりです。面白いでしょうね。

Is there any change in meaning compared to the original sentence?
(The reason why I ask such question is because I think the original sentence uses two "こと", won't that be a little bit redundant?)


texts: What is the diffrence between hiragana and katakana?

texts:
I am just a begginer. I finished learning Hiragana . Now , I am learning Katakana . I realized that they are same. So that made me worry a little .
How do I decide which one to choose ? Are there any words that you cant use katakana instead of hiragana or hiragana instead of katakana  letters in them ? Also, If  write it like that will Japanese people can understand what I meant ?


texts: What is the correct question 何だろう or 何だろうか

texts:
How to ask a question with だろう in the correct way?
Should I add か in the end?

Like 何だろうか？
I saw a lot of examples and almost always guys omit か in the end. And just say 何だろう；いつだろう。。。


texts: What exacty does ゆえ mean, and how does it fit this JLPT question?

texts:
I have this question in my JLPT textbook:

  男女{だんじょ}平等{びょうどう}といっても、女性{じょせい}＿＿＿の差別{さべつ}はまだ残{のこ}っている。

  A ゆえ　B たる　C なり　D こそ

The book says the answer is A, which is weird to me because I thought ゆえ was kind of like "ergo", or "as a result from". If you say 女性{じょせい}ゆえ, it seems to me like one is saying that somehow the 差別{さべつ} is because of women.

So I must have ゆえ wrong. What exactly does it mean?


texts: What does 「例によって例のごとくや」 mean?

texts:
I have noticed that there is a definition for 「例によって例のごとし」 in a dictionary online but there is slightly difference in the sentence ending, 「くや」 and 「し」. I am not sure if they have the same meaning.

This sentence is said by a manga character who I believe used Kansai dialect because he previously said the following sentence.

  かわいい顔をしとるやないか。


texts: Why does 「でも」make question words mean 'any'?

texts:
いつ、どう、どれ、どこ、だれ、なに、etc. are all question words.

However, いつでも、どうでも、どれでも、どこでも、だれでも、なんでも、etc, all mean 'Any ___'.

What's making this happen? Is it just a special exception that evolved over time, or is there some reason for this considerable shift in meaning?

I ask as while I'm still not 100% when it comes to the particles で、も、and でも, I still don't get what's going on here.


texts: Modern names of the obsolete kana ゑ and ゐ

texts:
In modern Japanese, the kana ゑ/ヱ (we) and ゐ/ヰ (wi) are largely obsolete. Words formerly containing them now are pronounced with /e/ and /i/, so they were replaced by え and い, respectively.

But when referring to the letters themselves, it would be ambiguous to pronounce them like that. So what are the names of ゑ and ゐ currently? That is, how do you refer to those letters in speech?


texts: Do all the い-adjectives become adverbs when you add く to them?

texts:
Do all い-adjectives become adverbs when you add く to them?  For example:

新しい　=　新しく
早い　　=　早く

But does this work with all the い-adjectives?


texts:
I'm translating a Q&A session for some friends (link here), and I'm having a bit of trouble with this question:

  Q: みっちゃんは地デジ対応ですか？

  A: ち、地デジ……？　ふ、ふふん、残念ながら、私の口には合わなかったわね！

I translated these as the following:

  Q: Do you have digital broadcasting at home, Micchan?

  A: D-digital broadcasting..? Heh, heheh... I'm sorry to say that it just isn't for me!

I took 対応 as "dealing with" (or having), and 合わなかった as "something I didn't agree with".

I have no idea what 私の口 means in this sentence, which makes me feel like I'm missing something crucial in this conversation.

How should these be translated?


texts: What does it say on my Japanese alarm clock?

texts: I bought an alarm clock (good clocks with AA batteries instead of button-like) with Japanese characters and found it difficult to understand, even with a dictionary. Could someone explain what is written on my alarm clock?


texts: What does [可愛が]りたい mean and how to use it?

texts:
桃香を可愛がりたい気持ち、抑えられないよ

Touka o kawaii ga ritai kimochi, osae rare nai yo.

The example sentence is like that. I'm wondering if this ritai here is in the same use as aritai like in Questions about ありたい.

What I know is that 可愛 means cute and since を is a direct object particle, it makes

Touka is cute

気持ち is feelings

抑えられ is suppressed, and ない negates it, so it means cannot be suppressed, but the りたい part makes me wonder.

If the use of りたい here is the same as in that link above, then does it means the English translation would be

It can't be suppressed that I felt Touka is getting more and more cuter

?


texts: What is the usage of てくる in this sentence?

texts:
社長から電話がかかってきたとき、私は子供とピクニックに出かける準備をしていた

I found this question on a JLPT N4 exercise, What I knew about the てくる is to do something and go back or to become, but I don't really think both might make sense.


texts:
Consider the following bolded sentence from Fate／stay night (previous and next 2 sentences provided for some context).

  古来より、魂というものは扱いが難しい。
  在るとされ、魔術において必要な要素と言われているが、魂《それ》を確立させた魔術師は一人しかいない程だ。

  魂はあくまで“内容を調べるモノ”“器に移し替えるモノ”に留まる。
  それを抜き出すだけでは飽きたらず、一つの箇所に集めるという事は理解不能だ。
  だって、そんな変換不可能なエネルギーを集めたところで魔術師には使い道がない。

Treating もの as a nominalizer makes it look like "The soul is, at the utmost, something you'd study the substance with [魂は(で)内容を調べるもの], something you'd put inside a vessel [魂は（を）器に移し替えるもの], however this looks quite dubious - can you put the same topic particle は to two different uses in the same sentence? Is there a way to employ は in one way that would make sense in both nominalized clauses?

In other words, I can't make heads or tails with the grammar here. How does this sentence work, and what does it mean?


texts: The meaning of 飲み友か或いはもっとより良い関係を結べるか

texts:
飲み友か或いはもっとより良い関係を結べるか

That sentence is difficult. This is my interpretation:

  I wonder if being drinking friends is better or if it's better to have
  another (better) kind of relationship ...

Am I off the mark? If so, what's the real meaning?


texts: What is the difference between どころか or ものか?

texts:
This is a sentence from my JLPT prep book:

  新{あたら}しい首相{しゅしょう}に代{か}わったが、景気{けいき}は回復{かいふく}する　（　　）、悪化{あっか}する一方{いっぽう}であった。

The answer is: ものか, but I thought it was どころか.

I can't figure out why どころか isn't correct or is unnatural. They seem to both mean the same thing, and can both follow the dictionary form of a verb.


texts: What is the difference between these sentences?

texts:
I was trying to write "Half of the population will die" in Google Translate. I wrote：

「人口の半分は死にます。」

But Google decided this was better:

「人口の半分が死亡します。」

Are these just different ways to write the same sentence, or is using the noun and する verb better for this sentence?


texts:
そんな彼女が、普通に笑うところを、一目でいいから見てみたかったーーと。

Hi. How should I understand the ところを?
I have searched a lot about the explanation of the construction ところを but none of them fits the context.
Thank you.


texts: Looking for the proverb "Parents work hard, our life is so comfortable that children become beggar"

texts:
I heard the following proverb that was said from Japanese (if not Chinese).

  If our parents are working too hard, our life becomes very convenient up to a point that causes their grandchildren become beggars.

Is there such a proverb in Japanese? If yes, what is that?


texts: I've noticed that it seems rare to have a long vowel followed by a geminate consonant (っ + consonant). The only example I can think of is when attaching a suffix like 〜って to a word ending in a long vowel (e.g. 東京って). Does this ever occur word-internally in Japanese? If so, is there a list of examples of this?


texts: Can 変身 be used instead of 変化 in this case?

texts:
From this post, I gather that the difference between 変身 and 変化 is a matter of the transformation’s distinctness. However, I came across 変化 being used in the following sentence:

  カメレオンは、環境が変わったとき、色の変化が見られる。

It seems to me that a chameleon’s color-change is distinct enough to warrant the use of 変身. Then, could 変身 also be used in this case or does only 変化 make sense?


texts:
太郎が今ヨーロッパに行っている。
‘Taro is now in Europe (as a result of having gone there).’
太郎が去年ヨーロッパに行っている。
‘Taro is the one who has the experience of having gone to Europe last year.’
Can the latter mean the same as the former saying he went to Europe and has stayed there since?
What makes the latter different in meaning while both say ヨーロッパに行っている? Is it because of 今 and 去年？
What if both sentences have no indication of when it happened? That is 太郎がヨーロッパに行っている? What could this mean?


texts:
"Master suppression techniques" also known as "domination techniques" are defined as "ways to indirectly suppress and humiliate opponents".

  Master suppression techniques are defined as strategies of social manipulation by which a dominant group maintains such a position in a (established or unexposed) hierarchy.

The five major master suppression techniques are summarized as:

  Making invisible - to silence or otherwise marginalize persons in opposition by ignoring them
  Ridicule - in a manipulative way to portray the arguments of, or their opponents themselves, in a ridiculing fashion
  Withold information - to exclude a person from the decision making process, or knowingly not forwarding information so as to make the person less able to make an informed choice
  Double bind - to punish or otherwise belittle the actions of a person, regardless of how they act
  Heap blame / put to shame - to embarrass someone, or to insinuate that they are themselves to blame for their position

is there an equivalent expression in Japanese? How would one accurately express the same meaning as a phrase?

The best fit I can think of is "いじめ", or perhaps "虐待", but it is too general, and doesn't carry the meaning of "techniques" as far as I know. Perhaps "抑制（するための）テクニック" but that comes off as a chiropractic term.


texts:
This is a follow up to this question regarding the difference between てある and ている.

So far I have come across two possible reasons to use てある:

てある and ている can both be used to show states, however with ている
there is some ambiguity with action verbs as to whether it's the state or the action that is meant.

  Would one of the uses of てある be to make clear that it's the state and not the action that is meant ? Does this discard the implication of an actor ?

Another reason for using てある would be it draws attention to the fact that there is someone who was responsible for the resulting state whereas ている is simply stating the state.

  Why and when would someone want to draw attention to the actor of an action in such ?

Why is てある used in this case (top left panel):


texts: How to understand the meaning of 愛{いと}しさ

texts: I know that from adjective we can make adjectival noun like: 高{たか}い -> 高さ - means high and hight. But how to understand/translate the word 愛しさ? I heard it in one of C-ute songs.


texts:
Context: Grandad was bought food as a gift for looking after Maruko. Maruko apologises to grandad because dad has just eaten it all. Then Grandad says:

  「いいんじゃよ、まる子。おじいちゃんは別にただまる子をかわいがっているだけじゃ」
  Grandad (I) just cares for Maruko.

I'm familiar with 別に when used in a negative clause to mean "(not) particularly". I can't understand what it means in this sentence.

Also a bit confused about the placement of だけ. If it's at the end doesn't it mean that he does nothing but care for Maruko i.e. "All I do is care for just (ただ) Maruko".

If it helps, the previous sentence is

  「おじいちゃん、おばあちゃん、ごめんね」

which is said by Maruko.


texts:
In this song (https://www5.atwiki.jp/hmiku/pages/31606.html) that I was translating, there's a part where there seems to be an implied verb, but I can't figure out what it's supposed to be.

  銃口に花束を詰め込んで　さよならを

  二秒前
  「ほら、早く撃ちなよ。」

The gun's muzzle was crammed with a bouquet of flowers. My goodbye, before two seconds, "C'mon, shoot quickly."

さよならを    二秒前 seems to need a verb, but I don't know what's being implied. "Was prevented" or something of the sort would go with the flowers in the muzzle, but not with the next line, I wouldn't think.

Anyone have any suggestions for what the verb might be?


texts:
I have been watching Fate/Stay Night, the Unlimited Blade Works one. In this particular episode, as Shirou (male character) tells other characters that Saber (female character) will stay at his place, they are very surprised and use the word 同居{どうきょ}.

The subtitles I have used the word "shack up" to translate that idiom. However, in English "shack up" has a sexual connotation :

  To live together and have sexual relations without being married.
  To live, room, or stay at a place

However, in Japanese it does not seem so :

  「同居」は、家族が一緒に同じ家に住むことをいうが、家族でない人が、その家族の家に一緒に住む場合にもいう。また、部屋を借りて友達や兄弟などと一緒に住む場合にもいう。

But as the other protagonists are quite shocked at this, and that Fate/Stay Night is after all based on an erotic game, does 同居 carry a sexual connotation in colloquial Japanese ? Or is it just poor translation ?


texts: Meaning of ~を~に(して) / ~を~として / ~を~にする / ~を~とする / ~を~にした / ~を~とした

texts:
While studying I found this grammar form, which I kinda understand by instinct, but can't actually formalize in my head; this is what the book say:

  [~を~であると考えて]

  1) 祖父は今日も孫のヒロシを話し相手にして散歩に出かけた。

  2) 今回のキャンプを最後に、わたしたちのグループは解散することになった。

  3) 卒業を1つの区切りとして、これからは自立して生きていきたい。

  4) この大会に参加できるのは社会奉仕を目的とする団体だけです。

  5) この研究会では環境問題を中心としたさまざまな問題を話し合いたいと思う。

  「N1をN2にして」という形で、ある行動や場面において、N1はN2であると言いたいときの表現。

I think I kinda get the general meaning:

  1) 祖父は今日も孫のヒロシを話し相手にして散歩に出かけた。

  Today Hiroshi's grandfather went out walking again with is grandchild Hiroshi as speaking partner [something like they speak while they walk, I guess?]

  2) 今回のキャンプを最後に、わたしたちのグループは解散することになった。

  It was decided that at the end of this camp our group would be dispersed

  3) 卒業を1つの区切りとして、これからは自立して生きていきたい。

  As one of the end of graduation, I want to be able to live indipendently from now on

  4) この大会に参加できるのは社会奉仕を目的とする団体だけです。

  Only associations working in the voluntary social services can attend this assembly

  5) この研究会では環境問題を中心としたさまざまな問題を話し合いたいと思う。

  In this seminar, whose focus are enviromental issues, I wat to discuss many issues

My problem is, I can't formalize this in my head, and my Japanese is failing me in clearly understanding the book's explanation ([~を~であると考えて] and 「N1をN2にして」という形で、ある行動や場面において、N1はN2であると言いたいときの表現); it seems to mean "N1 is N2", but then again I'm not sure about the sentences:

  祖父は今日も孫のヒロシを話し相手にとして散歩に出かけた

This seems to be 祖父はN1をN2として, whith N1 = 孫のヒロシ and N2 = 話し相手; so... the grandchild is the speaking partner? And the sentence means something like "As for the grandfather [祖父は], he went out to take a walk [散歩に出かけた] with his grandchild as speaking partner [孫のヒロシを話し相手にとして]"? Is in て-form because after the sentence continues, while とする would be used if the sentence ended?

If I were to asnwer to the question "Ok, but what does it mean?" I'd be confused explaining; it's kinds "N1 as N2", "N1 is N2", but I'm not sure that's all there is. The second sentence is proving particulary difficult to fit in this framework:

  2) 今回のキャンプを最後に、わたしたちのグループは解散することになった。

N1 = 今回のキャンプ, N2 = 最後(に)? Or does N2 comprise something more? I can't fit it in "N1 is N2" frame no matter how I parse it.

I also found this question, which kinds seems to confirm my intuition, but it doesn't really help in formalizing it.

Edit: the book explains all the forms in the title with the same examples and explanation, hence this question's title; not sure about any difference among those forms.


texts: Is there a defined cause for the recent rise in the popularity of gairaigo?

texts:
I was looking on the web for Japanese graphic design and found some pre-WWII material. Then I saw some more recent advertisement material. Comparing the two eras, I notice a difference that was beyond the visual style. In older works it seems that kanji were used more often than in their modern counterpart. Whereas katakana is used more generously in modern media than kanji. An overwhelming amount of that katakana is gairaigo, which is almost entirely based off of English.

For example,On google translate, if one types the word 'big' in the English section, two options appear to be the most common translation in the Japanese section. One is ビッグ (biggu) while the other one is 大きい (Ōkī). Both are clearly different when written down, but are defined in English as the same word.

What is the reason for its popularity and acceptance and why aren't kanji compounds formed at the same rate as directly imported terms?


texts:
I believe, many of you have already seen this meme.

In short, in a PlayStation game Fate/Extra an anime girl is singing Jingle bells-like song in Japanese:

  走{はし}れ艝{そり}よ
  風{かぜ}のように
  月{ずき}見晴{みは}らを
  パドルパドル！

Source: Full original scene recording on YouTube

I just started to wonder, what does it exactly mean?

Jisho considers it as a paddle

  A paddle is a tool used for pushing against liquids, either as a form of propulsion in a boat or as an implement for mixing.

Among other meanings, Japanese Wikipedia also considers it as a paddle or something similar. At the Trivia section (here), I have found that it can also mean some kind of punishment enforced in navy or former schools.

Is it a kind of onomatopoeia with a meaning similar to Jingle bells? Or maybe it stands for some kind of whip given to bad behaved children or something similar?


texts: Can anyone please tell me the exact difference between すぐに and すぐさま?


texts:
In the following sentence:

魚は三匹に増えていた。

I don't know whether to interpret に as to or by.
So if I start with one fish then:

The number of fish increased to three (there are now three fish), or
The number of fish increased by three (there are now four fish)

Which is the correct translation and how would I modify the sentence to make it have the other meaning? Thanks.


texts: Help understanding this line - usage of くれる

texts:
I'm a bit confused when trying to understand the second line in the below.

To add a bit of context to help, the main character has traveled back in time, so that he can stop something bad from happening in the future that involves these two characters and their friends. In the few sentences before this he accidentally says something that he shouldn't have known, but he does since he learnt it before he traveled back in time (no one else knows he has gone back in time).

My first bit of confusion stems from the usage of くれる. My understanding of くれる is that it is used when someone other than the speaker does something for the speaker or someone close to them. So in this case the only logical answer is 咲良, however I am not quite sure. The second part that I am not sure of is what is being referred to by その状態.

If I had to guess what is being said in the second sentence I think the main character is saying that it would be for the best if 咲良 does not know anything about what has/is going to happen.

  （やっぱり咲良と接する時は、なるべく何も知らない振りをしよう……）

  何も知らないままでいてくれるなら、その状態が一番いい。


texts: Why does 「電話は切れた」 sound more adversarial than 「電話が切れた」?

texts:
I noticed that while 「…、電話が切れた」 sounds just like a neutral phrase ("... and the call got cut off."), 「…、電話は切れた」 sounds more like you were negatively affected / that the person on the other side intentionally cut off the call.

Are there any other examples where changing が→は causes something similar?
Is there a grammatical explanation for why this is the case?

Example 1

This is the sentence which first made me think this:

  「そうですか。わかりました。失礼します！」
  一方的に三浦は吐き捨てて、電話は切れた。

池井戸潤『空飛ぶタイヤ（上）』、講談社文庫、p. 353

I felt that は flowed marginally better here -- my initial thought was that it's because it was an adversarial situation, but perhaps it's for another reason.

Example 2

After some Google searching, I found a document which actually includes both phrases, and I think it's interesting:

  大分市内在住 82 歳男性宅に、「7 月分の高額療養費の支
  給が 35,000 円ある。手続きは今日まで。お客様番号を伝
  えるので、保健所に電話するように。お客様番号は
  998-573」との電話があった。不審に思い「市役所に出
  向けばよいのか？」と聞くと電話は切れた。

vs

  平成２４年１０月１１日午後、大分市に住む７８歳（女
  性）の被保険者宅に、支所の職員を名乗る男から電話がか
  かり「保険料の還付が３万円程度ある。８月に緑色の封筒
  で通知を送っているが見たか？」と尋ねられた。また番号
  （９９８７４５）を告げられ、これをメモに控えようとし
  た被保険者が何回か聞き返しているうちに電話が切れた。

To me, the first passage seems to feel like the call was cut in response to the question, while the second passage is more like the call just cuts at that point in time (as opposed to being initiated by a human in response to something).


texts: Perspective of "億劫にならない" in this statement

texts:
顔面偏差値の差か、それとも日頃の行いのせいか、とにかく翔はいつも通り俺の隣でモテまくる。
まあ今に始まった話じゃないけど、翔のヤツこれでよく色々と億劫にならないな。

Context: 翔 is being popular with the ladies at the moment.

Maybe its cuz of his good looks, or how he conducts himself on a daily basis, anyways, kakeru like always, is beside me with the girls fawning over him.
... or maybe what I just said isn't the case, kakeru, this bastard, must (want/) to be so variously annoying. (kakeru is the host of a meetup, and probably doesn't want to get the way of the development of possible relationships).

Is the speaker not wanting 翔 to これでよく色々と億劫 or is the speaker saying that 翔 doesn't want to これでよく色々と億劫?
The latter makes more logical sense but the sentence still feels very strange.


texts:
ＮＴＴドコモは、ドコモ口座を新しくつくることを１０日から止めています。そして、これからドコモ口座をつくるときは、顔の写真を送ってもらったりして、もっと安全に利用できるようにすることにしています。被害があった人に、とられたお金を払うことも銀行と相談しています。

Source:
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/easy/k10012608551000/k10012608551000.html
Does it mean send a photo of your face or using some other kind of identification method (as the たり implies)  to try to help you to use it more safely?
Because I read from Maggie Sensei's site that:

However you may hear/see a sentence with  just one たり ( = tari)

to do something and etc.

Thank you for reading my question.


texts:
I'm stuck trying to guess what 断面神 might be.

Context: Expressing astonishment it's possible to find a place in Tokyo where croissant is about as good as in Paris (while looking at a photograph of said croissant, cut in half and showing the inside). The whole dialog:

  「クロワッサン！」
  「断面神！！」
  「食べたすぎる！！！」


texts: Could this sentence be better rephrased?

texts:
その婦人たちは、両親が昼間工場で働いている子供たちの世話をしています。

The 働いている子供たち part sounds like "working kids" so maybe another particle could be put between 働いている and 子供たち? Or a comma?


texts:
Is there any difference in meaning between these three structures? I think they all roughly mean "whether or not" but are they interchangable? Examples below:

  両親は賛成するかしないかにかかわらず、僕は君と結婚します。

vs

  明日来る来ないにかかわらず、必ずわたしに電話してください。

vs

  明日は仕事を守れるかどうかが不安だった。


texts: kanji composition question -- why these radicals for 出?

texts:
My explanatory Kanji dictionary lists 山 and 冂 as radicals used in 出. I see how the first one would be used, but cannot understand the reasoning for the second one.

I see two alternatives:

冂 is used to give the reading of 出

Or, more likely

I don't fully understand the idea behind radicals :-)

Could someone please explain?


texts:
お姉ちゃんに何を言われようが、まる子はウキウキ気分なのであった。
  What was said by her sister ???? but, Maruko felt cheerful.

I can't think of any way in which something which is passive can also be volitional. How do I understand this construction?


texts: What does the combination of や and もmean?

texts:
I don't understand the following sentence:

やさい や くだもの も おおい です。

I know that や is used for incomplete enumeration and も means "also". But how to interpret such a combination of these two particles?


texts:
すごく背が低いけれど、いつも堂々とした態度で、颯爽とした雰囲気がある。
そして――‥‥彼女は僕の彼女だったりする。

What exactly is the meaning of "だったりする" here? I've read in A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar by Seiichi Makino that when たり is used with adjectives and nouns, it means "sometimes". Accordingly, when I first read the above line, I understood the part in question as "She is sometimes my girlfriend(and sometimes not)". Is that the correct interpretation? From context, it doesn't feel like it is so. Is there another way of understanding "だったりする"?


texts: ような (you na) vs ように (you ni) grammar question

texts:
I have learnt that ように (you ni) can modify a verb. And ような (you na) modifies a noun. (I am not sure that is quite correct or not). Today I came across this sentence in "NHK easy Japanese" :

  物を売る仕事になかなか人が集まらないため、店で働く人が集まるように、休みを多くしました

Firstly I don't know what it actually means.
Does it mean:
Because not a lot of people selling goods, many people took holidays by working inside the shops (!?).
休み【やすみ】 (yasumi) is a noun, so why is ように used instead of ような?

Thank you very much


texts: What are these furigana (or punctuation marks)?

texts:
Possible Duplicate:
  Do Japanese writers use underline for emphasis?

What do the punctuation marks next to あだ and はるひ mean?

I can type the sentences, or show the passage if it helps.


texts: Usual term for the topic of foreigners learning Japanese?

texts:
In English we can express in several ways the idea of foreigners learning English, or teaching themselves something.

My title isn't totally clear so I'm looking for the name of the topic, not what you call a person who's doing it.

For instance, here are some of the common ways to express it in English:

General, but on your own:

Self study
Teach yourself

Specifically language learning, with our without a teacher:

English for non-native speakers
English as a second language
ESL

What is the equivalent topic called in Japanese?

For instance, what might be on the sign for the section in a bookshop in Japan with Japanese textbooks for English speakers?


texts:
How many Jōyō Kanji are identical to simplified Hanzi?

If we need to define a restriction for the simplified Hanzi, I would suggest
List of Frequently Used Characters in Modern Chinese.


texts:
私は地震が怖い。

For me that's like saying 私は彼がきれいです.
It doesn't make sense putting 私 here.


texts: difference between "田中さんのこと" and just "田中さん"?

texts:
I'd like to compare the meanings of:

田中{たなか}さんを尊敬{そんけい}している。
田中さんのことを尊敬している。

Are the following statements true?

-#2 has a much broader meaning, right? Like, I respect Tanaka as a man, a husband, a father, a translator, a software developer, etc. All inclusively, I respect pretty much everything about Tanaka. Very deep and genuine meaning. Because it is so inclusive, any surrounding context will not change the meaning.

-#1 sounds very flat. A garden variety "I respect Tanaka." Something that you are supposed to say to be polite.

But then, can I say something like:
"マンガのことが好きです。"

I not only like to read manga, I also appreciate manga for how it reflects the societal norms of Japan, how it helps non-natives and native speakers become able to read Japanese, etc.


texts:
稲が病気になっていないかどうかいつもチェックして...
  Always check whether or not your rice plants are diseased and ...

This is the first time I've seen かどうか come after a negated predicate. Is this usual? How does the meaning/nuance change if I just say なっているかどうか?


texts:
彼は、興奮して、もったいぶった顔つきをしてはいるが、内心の喜びを、上品ぶった冷静さの態度でかくそうとしていた。

also in the following sentence is the same てはいる used but with the humble equivalent おる if so why is it used in its passive form?

  あいつの話など、一言も信じてはおられないでしょうな？


texts: What is the use of the passive conjugation in these sentences?

texts:
I stumbled upon this sentence:

  多くの方々が命を奪われた。

While I understand what this means, I'm not sure of why the passive verb there is (supposedly) correct. If I were to say that, I'd say

  多くの方々の命が奪われた。

Since it's a passive verb, shouldn't 命 be the subject of the sentence?


texts: Can ごとに be replaced by それぞれ in this question?

texts:
正月は家ごとに門松を立てる。

For example, could I say

正月はそれぞれの家に門松をたてる。

If so, the meaning remains the same, or are there any subtle nuances that comes with each word? It seems to me, whenever i see sentences with either words, that sometimes they can be interchangeable and sometimes it just seems weird replacing one with the another. More specifically, some sentences with ごとに could be rewritten using the pattern それぞれの (which in this case acts as a pronoun), for example:

木村さんは会う人ごとに挨拶している。 -> 木村さんはそれぞれの会う人に挨拶している。
Is the second sentence above by any chance correct?


texts: Both these words seem to mean "worry-free" or optimistic. A quick check on Weblio somehow validates this. How do these words differ in terms of nuance? のんき is also said to mean careless and other things that have a negative connotation in English, but I cannot see sample sentences that support these negative qualities (unlike, say, そそっかしい).


texts: What's the correct translation for 'Japanese Student': 'Nihonjin gakusee' or 'Nihonjin no gakusee'?

texts: I have seen both uses in different contexts, but I'm having trouble figuring out in which case to use the 'no' particle!


texts: Is there a relationship between ~たところで and するところだった?

texts:
I am studying an JLPT book on listening, and in two questions very close to each other, the grammatical forms ~たところで and するところだった came up.

My book defines ~たところで as giving an impression of giving up because something is perceived to be impossible. An example they give is:

  走{はし}ったところで...

My rough translation is, "(we won't make it) even if we run."

My book defines するところだった as meaning something was intended, but it did not happen. An example they provide is:

  危{あや}うく、だまされるところだった。

My approximate translation is, "that was close - we were almost tricked."

Both mean something won't happen in spite of intention...?

This sentence came up in a question:

  お伝{つた}えするのを忘{わす}れるところでした。

And apparently it means that the speaker did not forget to tell someone something.

First, I got a little confused about which of the above two variations on ところ was being used, but either way, it seems like it's saying the person did not forget in spite of intending to. Intending to forget something seems a little weird, though, so I think something isn't adding up.

Am I right that ~たところで and するところだった are similar in meaning? Do they have anything to do with intention? And does 忘{わす}れるところでした have anything to do with intending to forget?


texts: Sentence pattern for describing a list of objects

texts:
I was trying to describe a list of objects from a more generic point of view to a more specific one. While at the generic level I feel quite sure, using for example.

  みなりのポケットの中には、ボールペンを二本あります。
  There are two pens in the dress' pocket.

When trying to be more specific describing those pens I feel like I'm missing something (probably grammar). I would say something like:

  一本は赤いです、一方は青いです。
  One is red and the other is blue.

Is that correct/natural? Are there other (better) ways to express the same concept?


texts:
I have this sentence from tangorin. It an example sentence from sabishii:

  彼女は彼が寂しく思い忘れられてしまうのではないかと思ったのです

The translation is:

  She thought he might be feeling lonely and forgotten.

I don't get this part: 寂しく思い忘れられてしまうのではないか
What is the omoi part role in this? How come this translation got like that? There's nothing connecting 寂しく思い and 忘れられてしまうのではない, is this an idiomatic expression?


texts:
In the sentence: 昨日いっぱい寝たから今日は元気いっぱいです。

I want to ask about the placement of いっぱい. I want to know if it is ok to say いっぱい元気, instead of the other way around?

Is there a general rule to the placement of these modifiers?


texts:
I found this sentence on a video game review site:

  日本だと「不思議のダンジョン」と言ったほうがわかりやすいかもしれないローグライクゲーム。

I am not sure whether だと means 'in Japan' or 'if it were in Japan'. The translation in one case would be:

  This is a rogue-like game that, in Japan, is called 'Amazing Dungeons' which is probably a bit easier to understand.

A rogue-like game is a genre of video game which is similar to the original of the genre, Rogue. The other option which I personally think is more likely is:

  This is a rogue-like game which if made in Japan would probably be called something more easy to understand like 'Amazing Dungeons'"

It boils down to me not knowing the だと construction. Can someone be kind enough to explain this usage to me?


texts:
Here is a paragraph from Yukio Mishima's 憂国 - "Patriotism" which I understand relatively well, but miss the point of the whole scene. So I don't need a translation but an explanation about the subtext happening during this scene (I hope I can ask such a question here).

  新婚旅行は非常時だというので遠慮をした。夜を過したのはこの家であった。床に入る前に、信二は軍刀を膝の前に置き、軍人らしい訓誡を垂れた。軍人の妻たる者は、いつなんどきでも良人の死を覚悟していなければならない。それが明日来るかもしれぬ。あさって来るかもしれぬ。いつ来てもうろたえぬ覚悟があるかと訊いたのである。麗子は立って箪笥の抽斗をあけ、もっとも大切な嫁入道具として母からいただいた懐剣を、良人と同じように、黙って自分の膝の前に置いた。これでみごとな黙契が成立ち、中尉は二度と妻の覚悟をためしたりすることがなかった。

The background is that the this couple is freshly married and moved for their first night together into this flat. My questions are specifically:

What is the significance of the lieutenant putting his sword
before his knees?
Why does she imitate him with dagger?
And why does that show her resolve?
What would have been possible consequences for her if she hadn't imitated him with the dagger or wouldn't have shown her resolve in any other?
Could she have shown her resolve in any other way than placing the dagger in front of her knees?

(The story is placed in the year 1936, at the February 26th incident, which is why national and traditional feelings have been very strong among the military. But even so, I have no idea if this was a kind of ideal behaviour of a wife during the time of the shogunate.)

Thank you very much for any clarifications.


texts: Are non-Japanese political party names translated, or transliterated?

texts:
Are the names of new political parties, especially in English-speaking countries, typically translated, or transliterated?

I looked at the Japanese language Wikipedia template for Australian political parties, and saw that Family First seemed to be translated (家族優先党), while the Australian Sex Party and One Nation seemed to be transliterated (オーストラリアセックス党 and ワン・ネイション) apart from the "党".

Background: Australia's Liberal Democratic Party looks like it might win a seat, and I'm curious whether it'd be called "自由民主党", as is claimed by the Japanese edition of Wikipedia here.


texts:
I'm new to learning Japanese and I was watching a Japanese TV drama and came across this sentence "ちょっと降りよっか。". And it translated as "Let's go down"

I heard that よっか is the colloquial form of ようか. Is this true? Can anyone please provide a reference on this. Also, か is a question marker, but the translation seems like a command or a suggestion so what's the exact role of か in this sentence?


texts: What distinguishes 丁重語 from other honourific forms?

texts:
On my bookshelf I have a book on formal speech, 敬語{けいご}, and it delineates respectful speech, 尊敬語{そんけいご}, from humble speech, 標準語{ひょうじゅんご}. And it combines both of these with polite speech, 丁寧語{てねいご}, as a matter of course.

This question mentioned another form of speech, 丁重語{ていちょうご}, which I've never really encountered. Maybe I just don't hang out with the emperor enough...?

The dictionary defines it as "courteous speech", and I found other definitions online that say it "refers to language that is used to deprecate oneself." But that doesn't really tell me enough to help me differentiate it from 標準語{ひょうじゅんご}. I looked it up on Japanese Wikipedia, but I have to admit, reading about how to use Japanese in Japanese does my head in a bit.

When is it used, and what differentiates it from other forms of formal speech?


texts:
In A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar, one of the uses of the te form is given as listing two or more verbs. An example is given, which is:

ジムは日本へ行って勉強しました。

This is translated as 'Jim went to Japan and studied (in Japan)'. My question is, can the sentence not be interpreted as 'Jim went to Japan and studied (but not necessarily in Japan)'? Does the te form allow both meanings?


texts: Why are the verb classes called ichidan and godan?

texts:
Is there a particular reason why verbs are classified as "class 1" verbs (一段動詞) and "class 5" verbs (五段動詞)?
Where did class 2 to 4 go? Do or did they exist at all, and why (not)?

Thanks!


texts: "I would argue that studying abroad helps you learn about what's around you"

texts:
A friend of mine recently gave me this argument -

"最近、多くの学生が自分探しの旅と称して、海外留学しているが、そういう人に限って目標が明確ではないので、何も得られず帰国する人も大勢いる。"
"Recently, many students are claiming to go on a trip to find themselves by studying abroad, however these people fail to define a clear goal, so don't acquire anything when they return to their home country."

I want to reply with this argument -

"I would argue that studying abroad helps you learn about what's around you, and helps to understand things other than what you are familiar with. It helps you gain new ideas and perspectives."
"海外留学は 人の周辺の理解に 論陣を張って、慣れること以外をわかってくれます。フレッシュな考えと見る目をくれます。"

Does the last sentence make sense? I'm concerned about the use of "argue" and 論陣を張って and 人の周辺の理解.


texts:
Can someone help figure out how the sentence in the title post can be translated? The full sentence is私はどうなりたっかたんだろう.
I loosely translated as "I wanted to become something". but I'm not sure if it's right at all, especially with だろう at the end, I don't know what nuance should be. If it helps, there's another sentence that follows本当は彼らの何になりたっかたんだろうIt's a girl speaking here and I think that in the last line she says "I wanted to become something for him/ or his something". She is talking about a friend who is in trouble and how she wants to be there for him.
Can someone tell me if I somehow got the gist of them? Thank you!


texts: How is するか and 傷つけるか used here, when it's in the middle of a sentence?

texts:
I'm wondering what the function of か is when it's not put in the end of the sentence. I'm fairly a beginner. I haven't learned how this work when's it followed by an を. Found this example here wherein 2 men fight.

やり出すと止まらない
どうすれば相手が傷つけるか知っていて
どうすれば自分が痛くなるかを知っている

From my little experience, this goes like.

I can't stop now that I started.
He knows what will wound him.
I know what will put me in pain.

On a sidenote, is my understanding of どうすれば here correct?


texts: I've tried looking this up in English--Japanese dictionaries with no luck. I did however get a few results in monolingual dictionaries but I still don't understand what it's supposed to mean and in what context it may be used. Any help is appreciated!


texts:
I've come across a portion of dialog, which has some grammar that I have not seen before. Focusing on the portion in bold, what is the purpose of て form plus てね? What does てね mean and is it a shortened version of something?

  待っててねー！！ キミのこと　すぐに見つけるからーーー！！！

  My translation: Wait!! Pal, because I'm coming to find you right now!!!


texts: About a line in a TV drama which is hard to understand

texts:
In the 2nd episode of "Tokyo Love Story", from 26:55 to 27:00

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNW0VEvfIbU#t=26m50s

「いやだね、この？」

What is the word/phrase after 「この」?


texts: WWWJDIC lists いちにん and ににん as alternative readings of 一人 {ひとり} and 二人 {ふたり}, but I can't recall anywhere I heard those readings except when counting more than 10 people for example 三十一人 {さんじゅういちにん}. Is that the only situation where 一人 and 二人 are read as いちにん and ににん, or are there any other situations?


texts:
I've tried Googling for Japanese/Japanese dictionary definitions of this phrase, but can only find usages so far, which haven't helped.

More context:

"俺たち職人の腕が光る"

I think from context that the speaker is saying "so that us artisans do well / look good / show how good we are", or something in that area, but dictionaries haven't been helpful so far - hoping Japanese StackExchange can solve the riddle!

Thanks.


texts: ~ろ・~ろも・思うて・~たった in 越後 dialect (新潟弁?)

texts:
At the start of this book the family are stated to be from 亀田町{かめだまち}, an area which is now part of 新潟市{にいがたし}, but it's also set historically (1919 at the start of the book). I'm presuming the specific dialect used is 新潟弁 but I'm not 100% sure.

Here, the father of the family responds to his wife's comment that the name he's picked for their daughter sounds like a boy's name:

  「お前はそういうろと思うてたったろも」

From what I can understand of 越後方言{えちごほうげん} from the internet:

そういうだろう→そういうろ (and this ending could also be だろ・ろー in some cases?)
思って→思うて (from the context, although I'm not entirely sure on this)
いた→いたった→たった　（Described as "過去重複形" on Wikipedia and I am assuming that the い is dropping out of 〜ていた)
けど→ろも (Also ども could be used here?)

So the meaning is, unless I'm hopelessly off-base roughly "I thought you'd say that..." (and he goes on to explain his reasoning for the name).  I'd like confirmation that this is correct, and any additional information on nuances I might be missing.


texts:
Take the following sentences:

いつか願いが叶うと信じている。
いつか願いが叶うのを信じている。/ いつか願いが叶うことを信じている。

I know what they mean, but I don't know if there is a practical difference between the two versions. More generally, are there times when only と or のを/ことを can be used, but not both?


texts: つく meaning in キズがつきやすい?

texts:
the verb つく has a lot of vague definitions and, in this sentence, it's not even written in kanji so finding the meaning would be more difficult.
I searched in jisho.org and am confused to choose the most suitable meaning for this sentence.
https://jisho.org/search/%E3%81%A4%E3%81%8F
Thanks in advance.


texts: What is the purpose of the か in this sentence?

texts:
「僕達はあなたがどれほど頑張っているか心配です」

I know that 「か」in the middle of a sentence can be used for embedded questions or as "or," but I don't see any of that here.


texts: Why is で used in 「大英雄が無職で何が悪い」

texts:
大英雄が無職で何が悪い

(What's wrong with a great hero being unemployed) (?)

I think understand the meaning of the sentence but I equate the "で" with the English "with", rather than think about why で is specifically used here. How different would it be if は was used instead of で? What's the nuance of this で?


texts: Help with translation of song line - confusing use of particles, unsure how to deal with a pun

texts:
So I was trying to translate this song (full lyrics here) but there's this one line that I can't make sense out of.

その餌で凍えて誂えて　この折に巣食い尽くす　この唄を　捧げます。
With that bait, freeze and make to order. Completely building a nest in this opportunity, I dedicate this song.

I'm unsure what to do with 巣食い尽くす, for one thing. Should it be 巣(を)食い尽くす, or is it like that 尽くす is the ending on the verb stem 巣食い, as I have it translated above? I'm thinking this is probably a pun.
As for the first part... I'm unsure exactly what it means? Grammatically it works but the で is throwing me off - if it were を, that would make sense, freezing and ordering are both things one does with food. But I'm not sure how the で would work here?
Thanks so much for your help!


texts:
I found a couple of examples using this noun; neither makes a lot of sense.
i think that ご存じ is an irregular polite form of 知る. However, if that is the case it is a bit odd as the polite form of a verb is a noun, though that wouldn't be the weirdest thing i have encountered with keigo. i have seen it used as name をご存じですか can i used any noun is such a way? if so what is the particle?
The other example i have is the following sentence:
ご存知だとは思いますが、クオーターしかつかえませんよ。
which i have a couple questions about; first what the hell does ご存知だ say?　i dont understand the だ at the end of this noun is it a particle or marking past tense of the knowledge? The クオーターしかつかえませんよ is confusing cause it isn't written in kanji but i believe it is クオーターしか使えませんよ。but even that i think should say クオーターしか使えますよ。　as the katakana is quarters しか is nothing but or only and 使える is serviceable or useable/ can be used.
lastly i find the は a bit weird here, why can it go after the と i have never seen that before. (とは思いますが) i am assuming it being used to makr the direct object like one can use では or には, etc.


texts: What's the difference between 「ゆっくりと...」and 「ゆっくりとして...」?

texts:
Is there any difference in meaning? When would you use 「~として」 instead of  「~と」?

I have already looked here for usage regarding「~と」.


texts: Kanji question: the onyomi of 江 is found

texts: The onyomi of 江 is コウ. Can someone give me a real-life example of when this is read this way?  It seems that most of the time its pronounced え...  I should also clarify, yes, I can look this up in a dictionary, but sometimes dictionaries give you words that are obscure/rarely used by most people-- true in any language, right?


texts: 寺尾さんは「１つでもアレルギーのある食品があるとお弁当を持たせています。週に１回、給食が食べられたらいいほうで、他の子どもたちと一緒に食事ができない娘を見るのは親としてはとてもつらいです」と話していました。(source)


texts: What is the difference between 失礼します and すみません?

texts: 失礼します and すみません。Is one form more polite or does it depend on the amount of time involved before someone leaves a situation? It seems like 失礼しますis used in preparation for leaving and すみません is used when actually leaving. I want to be polite when leaving a conversation, and excusing myself. Thank you.


texts: Etymology of the irregularities in day-of-the-month numerals

texts:
It is of course well known that the numbers used to count days are based on the Japonic numerals, but with a bunch of irregularities when compared to the つ-numbers. Compare

1 ひとつ　 ついたち
2 ふたつ　 ふつか
3 みっつ　 みっか
4 よっつ　 よっか
5 いつつ　 いつか
6 むっつ　 むいか
7 ななつ　 なのか
8 やっつ　 ようか
9 ここのつ ここのか

一日 is of course just suppletive, so that’s not really interesting. And 三日, 四日, 五日 and 九日 appear “regular”, that is identical to the counting numbers but replacing つ with か. However, for the remaining numerals it’s a bit more complicated:

二日 and 七日 have a vowel change (a→u/o) and I’ve found a source saying that 七日 used to be なぬか (and still is in some dialects). One finds a similar shift also in 二十歳 (はたち) and 二十日 (はつか).

六日 and 八日 meanwhile show some curious other vowel changes (む → むい, や → よう).

It seems as if the 日 counter would be -uka underlyingly but I cannot find anything backing this up, nor does it adequately explain all the irregularities. Does anyone know more?


texts: A few minutes ago on TV I heard the phrase 実に. I know that 実 is used like 実は - means the fact, that... But what the person have mean by saying 実に?


texts: Is there a better term than 保護シート for the sheets drunks and criminals are wrapped in?

texts:
In the Skeptics.SE question https://skeptics.stackexchange.com/questions/36602/do-japanese-police-roll-drunks-and-criminals-into-giant-futons , one term used for sheets that police wrap drunks and criminals in is 保護シート. (There's a photo of the sheet in that question)

However, I think most of the time that term is used for the covers on smartphone screens. I tried asking some native speakers, and they said they don't know what the correct term is.

Is there a name for these sheets, and if so, what is it?


texts: help me understand a few elements in this sentence

texts:
I have a few questions on this sentence:

 彼{かれ}は彼女{かのじょ}の手を捕{つか}まえた

What's the difference between 捕まえる and 捕える? both of them mean to catch right?

about 彼 and 彼女. From what I understand 彼 is he and 彼女 is her?
It's very odd to see it, because most of the time we are trying to use less directive speech in japanese right? How common are sentences like this one?

Thanks, Or


texts: Am I interpreting も correctly in this sentence?

texts:
有名な「ファミリア」は人員も豊富で基本的に飽和しているところが多い。

I'm interpreting this part as: Many Familias also have an abundance of members

But I'm not sure if the も here is actually inclusive.

Here's a picture of the page.


texts: Does a kanji with only a kun'yomi reading indicate a Japanese origin?

texts: Does a kanji with only a kun reading mean that it originated in Japan?


texts: Meaning of もっとも in the following sentences

texts:
What does もっとも mean in the following sentences?

日本人はしょうゆの味が好きです。もっともそうでない人もいますが。
この宝くじを買うと一万ドル当たりますよ。もっとも運がよければの話ですが。


texts: Legibility of handakuten and dakuten in small font sizes

texts:
I occasionally come across text with a small font size where I can tell that there's either an handakuten ゚ or a dakuten ゙ in a kana character, but I need to zoom in to tell which one it is.

Does this problem occur only for non-native speakers, or does it occur for native speakers as well, especially elderly ones?

Are there any other major problems with legibility with small font sizes?

If so, does the Japanese government regulate that font sizes must be of a minimum size to be legible in any circumstance, such as safety-critical information?


texts: Can someone please explain to me the grammar in the sentence このデータをうまく活用して、何かできないかな。

texts:
このデータをうまく活用して、何かできないかな。

This sentence is from Wanikani, and it's translated as "I don’t know if I can put this data to good use." I understand the first part of the sentence, but I don't know why 何かできないかな is translated, or has the meaning of "I don't know." Is it a set phrase?


texts:
(the blank represents some noun/object)

Is この＿＿はだれのですか？ grammatically correct and have the same meaning as the title?


texts: Confused about the meaning of these nicknames

texts:
I was reading manga the other day and came across these nicknames that I can't make sense of.
The context is as follows: Some mischievous students in a certain high school are bragging about their past. It's a contest to see who is the baddest of the bunch. But one of these students is diligent, and so, they are picking on him.

三中の 病院送ら
二中の 火の玉

As I understand it, this is describing someone who sends people to the hospital, but I have no idea what the 三中の is referring to. The same goes for the second one.
Some other nicks that I have trouble understanding are

不戦勝のマサ
ツ力イツパ


texts: Are there any risks in self-learning the kana?

texts:
I've found learning to speak Japanese in a classroom, rather than being self-taught, is useful because you get feedback on whether what you're saying sounds correct. Is the same true about learning to read and write the kana? Are there risks in merely self-learning, or is it ok to do so? If the former, is it ok to do it in your own time and briefly show your "homework" to your teacher?

I've got some books for learning the kana including "Kana can be easy", which includes the correct stroke order and warning about which kana are similar to which other kana. And the ubiquitous pictures used as mnemonics!


texts: What is せっかい焼き and how does this sentence work?

texts:
A and B have been talking, discussing politics, policy and like. Since A is CONSIDERABLY younger than B, B has been more advising A on things as they talked. Then this bit of conversation happens:

A: ありがとうB(. )少し…見えた気がする
B: なに
A?: お前よりは長く存在している者のせっかい焼きだ

This is my current understanding of the bit, with the caveat that the last one is HIGHLY problematic.

A: Thank you B. I felt... I saw (it) for a bit.
B: What?
A?: Meddlesome person who existed longer than you did.

Last line is literally (as far as I can see):

A?: Than you (toppic) nosy 焼き longer existing person, it's.

If this is A talking (which it might not be, since this manga doesn't use bubble arrows) which makes most sense given the exchange, it seems she is talking of someone older than B. But let me tell you there isn't anyone older than her that is relevant.
This could be B talking, then the age bit does make sense and omae is A, BUT, in the previous section it was B who was providing advice and guiding A to conclusions, so it's not that either.
The only thing I could think of, it's some fancy way to refer to what B was, since she did change recently and there was some memory loss. Also B has been linked with fire quite a lot, so 焼き might be a reference to that.
And yeah, I am not sure what せっかい焼き means, although I'm pretty confident せっかい is probably nosy or meddlesome.
So question 1: is the meaning of せっかい焼き
Question 2: is how would one interpret the last line by A?.


texts:
I found this sentence in a book :

  この魚もうたべあきただものね。だからあんたにやるよ。色は青いけれど刺身にしてくうとうめえから。

I didn't understand the last part of くうとうめえから


texts:
I had always thought that the phrase お高くとまる consisted of the adverbial お高く combined with the verb とまる. I never actually paid much attention to the literal meaning since it is obviously a figurative phrase (meaning 'to assume an air of importance').  However, I noticed in a dictionary that the と might actually be an adverbial と rather than being part of the verb. See below:

In the 例文 example, it is written in katakana as ト, presumably to differentiate it from まる. So I searched for the verb まる (lemma) but I could only find one instance:

The doesn't seem to make sense in the context unless the meaning is derived from something like "to excrete from a high place" or something like that. Maybe that's possible?

So is it とまる (one word) or is it ～（と）まる (particle plus verb)?


texts:
I have came across the below sentence from Nintendo 3DS instruction manual explaining about restriction of using credit card.

ニンテンドーeショップなどでのクレジットカードの使用や、商品-サービスの購入などを制限します。

For the first 「など」, I don't think it is necessary to put it in the sentence to be translated as 'place like...' or '....and other places' because Nintendo e-Shop is the only mentioned place where the card can be used. For the second 「など」, likewise, I don't see any other things other than goods and services mentioned in the sentence. Are the both particles 「など」really necessary to be put in the sentence?
For the particle 「の」, is it still grammatically correct if I omit it?


texts: How to say "quarter to" or "quarter past" some hour?

texts:
For example, how do you say:

It's quarter to 3.

and

It's quarter past 3.


texts: Does 「私は緊張してです私の日本語学習ついて」 read properly?

texts: I'm trying to say, "I'm nervous about learning Japanese" or "I'm nervous about my Japanese learning." Does 「私は緊張してです私の日本語学習ついて」 communicate that? If not, how should I communicate it?


texts: How to analyze sentence, クラスについてどう思いますか?

texts:
クラスについてどう思いますか?

Should this be translated as "What are you thinking of during class?" or "What do you think of class?" I'm having trouble with figuring out how to go about figuring out this sentence.


texts: Both show as having the same meaning so I am wondering which to use.


texts:
In my grammar book, it says 名詞修飾型 + ばかりに、
So what does this mean ? I can find nothing but Chinese web pages about that term.


texts:
How would you say 'No pressure' in a business context where you are trying to convey the lack of a need for urgency of completing a task?

Is it something like 別にする必要なく?


texts:
MC:「部活か？　夏休み中なのにお前の調理部午前中から張り切りすぎだろ」

  妹:「部活は部活だけど、最近はウチ料理しないで手芸部と化してるから。今みんなで羊毛フェルトにハマってるの」

Context: breakfast table, mc, and his sister and parents

I'm having a hard time relating not cooking at home with a change to an arts and crafts club, let alone why everyone is a fit for wool felt.

After this his sister just says goodbye and leaves.

What is she trying to say?


texts: Does は mean 'at least' in this sentence?

texts:
I can't catch the grammar of the following sentence

  今なら嫉妬で100人は殺{ヤ}れますよ。

In the previous text there was no reference to 100人.
What is the function of は here? Is it a contrastive marker used instead of を?

What is the meaning of the sentence?

  Now I am so jealous that I am able to kill at least 100 men.

Am I right?


texts:
The way I understand it, 何{なん}でもない and 別{べつ}に are both ways of saying "It's not important", "It's nothing" i.e. brushing off the question being asked. Does this mean that they are interchangeable? Or are there certain contexts where  何でもない is used and 別に cannot be and vice versa?

For example, in episode 19 of Revolutionary Girl Utena, the character Wakaba is asked by another character "Why do you keep accusing me of [being a player]?" to which she starts to reply, but then decides against it, saying "別に...何でもない" and turns away. In this context, she uses both, which makes me think that she uses both as a way of reinforcing "It's not important", which makes me think that both expressions have similar meaning and are therefore interchangeable.


texts:
Context:
A kid who is part of the Nanaya tribe is inside a dark forest when he sees a man with a red eye who looks like has gone mad and is standing in a field.

  七夜では紅赤朱と口伝される。
  くれないせきしゅ。
  一言にいえば極めて旧い、先祖還りを起こした混血の事を指す。
  小我としてのリセイが大我としてのリセイに飲まれて正気ではなくなってしまった者の事だ。
  赤い凶眼は、憑かれたモノの証だという。

  The red crimson has been made into Nanaya's popular tradition.
  Deep crimson vermilion.
  If I had to say it briefly it points to a very old mixed race which caused the return to the ancestors.
  Someone whose rationality has himself as been swallowed by a bigger rationality.
  They say that those red unlucky eyes are evidence of being possessed.

一言にいえば極めて旧い、先祖還りを起こした混血の事を指す

I do not understand this 起こした.
Is it to awaken or to cause?

先祖還り="Return of the ancestors" or "Return to the ancestors"?

を起こす="To cause something" or "To awake to something" or "To awaken something"?

Edit:
先祖還り= Atavism
So I presume

  一言にいえば極めて旧い、先祖還りを起こした混血の事を指す

could be

  If I had to say it briefly it points to a very old mixed race which awoke its atavism.

or

  If I had to say it briefly it points to a very old mixed race which caused  atavism.

Which would be better?


texts: How to describe how many people are there usingと?

texts:
If I want to describe that there are two boys and one girl in the park.
Could I use this sentence?
庭に男の子が二人と女の人がいます。
And if there are more than this, can I continue to use　と like this?
There are two boys, one girl, and three men.
男の子が二人と女の人が一人と男の人が三人います。
Thank you for your time!


texts: How to express "with (x) as well" and "even with (x)"

texts:
I am trying to express something akin to these sentences:

  Even with a spoon, he digs well (でも?)
  Even without a shovel, he digs well

I would also like to express this:

  With a shovel as well, he digs well [implying he digs great with a lot of tools]

How would one go about this?

I can see how my example sentences might not be best example, but what I'm basically wondering is whether adding でも or も　to the particle で is possible, as it with, for example, に

ででも does sound rather silly to me.


texts:
On https://www.wasabi-jpn.com/japanese-grammar/ha-vs-ga-five-points-you-need-to-know/ there is this sentence:

  オレンジは好き

It’s explained as “this indicates that you like oranges, but don’t like other fruits very much; that is to say, you generally don’t like fruits”. User4092 wrote that this is not an accurate explanation and that it can imply that the speaker doesn’t like some fruits.

I will repeat my question here:

Should I read it as “when it comes to fruits, I like oranges the most” or “when it comes to fruits, I mainly like oranges”? It seems to me that the latter is more correct as “I like oranges the most” does not imply that the speaker doesn’t like some other fruit. I mean if someone told me this and I'd like to buy him/her something fruit-flavoured should I assume that it would be best to not buy anything that is not orange-flavoured as the probability that he/she would not like its taste will be high?

It seems that the former isn’t the right way to understand it.
How much can I read form は when it’s used as a topic marker? Do people use it to imply things? Or is it best to not look too deep into that kind of sentence?


texts:
I am exercising conditional forms (I am still a beginner), and I have a bit of a problem bending this case:

I want to say "If you will be living in Japan, it is recommended that you learn Japanese."

Now if I write:

  日本に住んでいるならば、日本語を学ぶことだ。

that would mean "If you are living in Japan, .."

if I want to underline the future tense, I should be using 住んでいます, right?
But how do I make condition with a -masu form of the verb?

So far, I've learned about:

-eba form, but that is (to my knowledge) used with the dictionary form of the verbs;

-naraba, which again is used with the dictionary form of the verb;

-tara, which is used with the informal past form.

Can I say:

  日本に住んでいますならば、日本語を学ぶことだ。

How do I make conditional form of a verb in future tense?

Thank you for reading this far. Any help is appreciated.


texts: 彼は兄弟がいます actually 彼には兄弟がいます with に omitted

texts:
I read this Is it correct to say 私は二人のお兄さんがいる?

  Yoichi Oishi: With the expression – “私は二人のおにいさんがいる,” your friend is right. “私は兄がいる”
  sounds somewhat awkward, and “私には兄がいる” sounds perfect.

and it says it's unnatural if you don't use には. But a lot of native speakers corrected my incorrect sentence of

  彼に兄弟がいます。

to

  ①彼は兄弟がいます

Is there actually a に that is omitted in the corrected sentence so it is actually

  ②彼(に)は兄弟がいます

Native speaker told me

  Either is natural. Strictly, ② is grammatically correct, I think, but ① is also commonly used.

So am I right to assume that ① is just used in casual settings?


texts:
I have heard a couple of times now the て form of a verb followed by て (or perhaps it was って?) used as an imperative. Some examples are 見てて and 黙ってて, when asking someone to look and be quiet respectively.

I am also aware of this question, but in that circumstance, the listener is being asked to "stay waiting" as I understand. However, in the case of 見てて, this interpretation seems odd when all that's needed is a quick look. (A child was asking the father to look at a toy)

I assume the phrase is still a contraction of 見ていて, but how should I understand it, and what is the difference between this and 見て? What about other verbs?

Edit

Here is an example usage of 見てて in a similar situation.


texts:
There is a set of daily reflections said to be used in Japan's Navy, one being:

至誠{しせい}に悖{もと}る勿{な}かりしか
translated as "Hast thou not gone against sincerity"
(source https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gosei_(meditation))

至誠に悖る as in roughly "to oppose to sincerity" seems understandable
勿かり closest word in Jisho seems to be 勿れ, marked as particle, I couldn't find what exactly 勿かり is or how it was formed
しか 's か should be the "question mark" か, as for し it may perhaps be a stem of する? I don't recall seeing 「しか」before though

Is there some archaism or neologism involved?
The only guess is that 勿かり is a stem of a newly? formed verb formed from 勿れ, used as in {Vstem}する. That would be a verb formed from "must not" (maybe could be reworded to "avoid doing"?), modified by 至誠に悖る, finally as in "did you do the avoiding of 'opposing to sincerity'?" - is this correct?
If so - I have read おstemする expresses humility, お is missing here, but is this the nuance used here?
Thank you!


texts: Is 拒絶反応対受け入れ a grammatically correct way to say "acceptance versus rejection"?

texts:
I am looking to translate "acceptance versus rejection" in the same sense as "acceptance versus alienation". Is the following statement grammatically correct? Does it make sense to word the following in Japanese?

  拒絶反応対受け入れ


texts: How did でしょうand だろう come to mean "probably"?

texts: This is something I have been struggling with for long time. I don't see why, I don't understand how でしょう and だろう convey the meaning of "probably" as in sentences such as 雨が降るでしょう。It simply doesn't click in my head.  Perhaps an etymological explanation could makes sense of this. That would be really appreciated.


texts:
準備ができたら呼びに来るように。

What does this sentence mean? I mean how is ように used here. ように is found there at the end of the sentence.


texts:
I'm learning from the "Japanese from zero" course (currently book 2). It translates the following sentence:
Konbiniの ひだりうしろに ほんやが  あります
as
There is a convenience store behind the bookstore on the left.

Firstly, am I write in thinking that konbini and ほんや are the wrong way round?

Secondly, in the English translation 'on the left' implies that the bookstore is to the left of the speaker. The Japanese sentence suggests that the 'behind' and 'left' are relative to the konbini.
So I would translate this sentence as
There is a bookstore at the back left of the convenience store. Am I correct? If so how would you translate the the original sentence (There is a convenience store behind the bookstore on the left) into Japanese?  Thanks


texts:
I found this sentence online and it had no reading to it. So I presumed that “10” was read as とお considering how this number is counted within the つ counter group.

交わした10の約束は1つも守らなかった。

However, I wasn’t sure so I asked a Japanese person whether it was really とお or maybe じゅう and they said it was indeed じゅう, but they couldn’t explain why. I was wondering if anyone knew? Is it perhaps that no counter is necessary in this sentence? If the number in the sentence was 9 for instance, would it be read as きゅう or 9つ as in ここのつ?

Thanks in advance


texts:
今日のところは引き分けって事にしておいてやるっ！

I saw this sentence in the dialect of a videogame between character A and B.
B says this line after being defeated by A.
I think B is saying that they should pretend this (defeat) is a "tie" (Because he seems to be arrogant) but I'm not sure how the おいて part shows some kind of preparation for the future. Would it be ok to omit おいて form the sentence? or will change the meaning completely.

His entire speech was:

  「ハァ…ハァ…こんなに熱くなったのは久しぶりだぜ…
  　今日のところは引き分けって事にしておいてやるっ！
  　今度オレとやる時まで、誰にもやられるんじゃねぇーぞ！じゃー、あばよっ！」


texts: Meaning of 事実としてそう、と言われたら納得せざるを得ない

texts:
「私は確かに相当な寒がりだけど、でもあの里が寒すぎてヤバい」

  「だから超厚着するのがデフォで雪女は基本みんな体温が低い」

  「でも寒いと体って発熱するんじゃなかったっけ？」

  「さぁ。そんなこと言われても」

  「……まぁそうだよな、ごめん」

  事実としてそう、と言われたら納得せざるを得ない。

  まぁ経緯はどうあれ優が寒がりなのは事実なわけだし。

My question is more about the 事実としてそう at the start of the sentence and to what it is referring to. Based on the above conversation it seems that it's pointing to how he thinks that if your body is cold it generates heat, but she responds with そんなこと言われても which is sometimes said when むちゃくちゃなこと言われた. So, in this case is it like "Well, she's the one who is a 雪女 and if she's telling me that's not the case, then who am I to argue?".

edit: The thing is, if this was what it was referring to I would expect it to be そうではない etc. So anyone care to clarify what is being spoken about?


texts:
One of my dictionaries defines this (actually, 一騎当千のつわもの) as

  a matchless [an extremely mighty] warrior / a warrior who is strong enough to fight against as many as one thousand men.

My question is why was [当]{あ}てる used as the 「とう」 instead of [倒]{たお}す?  Seems like it would have driven the point home a bit more.

(Of course I know speculation is off-topic, so etymological answers are what I'm looking for).


texts:
I have the following sentence on my Japanese LinkedIn page:

私 の 目的 は 主導 と 代表的 な 執行 と 技術革新 通じて 例外的 な 質 を 生むて います。
It is meant to mirror my English mission statement:
"My mission is to deliver exceptional value through leadership, outstanding performance, and innovation."

My question is, should 私の be omitted?


texts:
I would like to ask what exactly the usage of たり is in this sentence. I understand the sentence and I get that it's somehow linking the 2 things but would appreciate some insight on it since I've hardly got a concrete understanding of it.

  季節によって果物はおいしくなったり、まずくなったりする

thanks.


texts: Is 立つ in 顔が立つ is always imperfective? If so why?

texts:
I understand that the word 立つ has various meanings, but basically can be used to describe a state (for inanimate and animate objects) as well as a process (for animate objects). To describe a state for inanimate objects both: 立つ and 立っている seem to be accepted forms (ビルが立つ, ビルが立っている).

Now, an idiomatic expression 顔が立つ is undoubtedly used to describe a state of "keeping one's face".

The form 顔が立っている does not seem to be recognised.
is my observation wrong?

What exactly does 立つ mean in this context and why the form 立っている is incorrect? Is it really a state, or could it be a response to some kind of a ..."periodic test"? Like "whenever I look at him, his response is 顔が立つ thus he is a man of honour"?

If the form 顔が立っている is incorrect, how does 立つ in 顔が立つ differ from 立つ in 腹が立つ, where 腹が立っている is also recognised and used form?


texts: Arabic numbers: half-width or full-width?

texts:
Using my computer, I type a lot of numbers in Japanese text, and I am not sure when to use half-width or full-width.

Are there rules?

Right now I only use half-width, is it fine?

Off-topic: Here is a picture of a book showing a happy mix of half-width and full-width.


texts: Except for pitch, what are the differences in pronunciation between Kansaiben and Tokyoben?

texts:
I have tried to ask people this type of question on many occasions and the answer is always the same, but people are notoriously bad at evaluating their own language, so I ask here:

Apart for pitch, which I know will differ significantly from region to region, what kinds of phonetic or phonological differences are there between the different dialects of Japanese, particularly between Kansai and Tokyo?

For instance, I'm always told that if a person from Osaka spoke with Standard Pitch Accent, they would sound exactly like a person from Tokyo, that there is essentially no other difference. Except I know there are slight differences, such as with devoicing. Does anyone know more about this?

EDIT: I'd like to be more specific. In a context where a native speaker of Kansaiben says a word or phrase that either sounds the same in standard Japanese, or where he happens to use standard Japanese, provided he gets the pitch right, are there typically any sounds that would tend to be pronounced differently and that would give away that person as a non-native speaker of Tokyouben, for instance?

If an American from New York and another from New Orleans say the same phrase they are unlikely to sound the same, even if they naturally used the exact same words. I'm wondering if the same concept of "accent" can apply to the pronunciation of particular sounds within Japanese dialects, specifically Kansaiben.


texts: Question about それに following a verb in dictionary form

texts:
So for context, 会長 doesn't like the speaker and the speaker just said something to make 会長 think even less of him. Could someone give an explanation on why それに is directly following a verb and what its doing.

  「会長{かいちょう}の目{め}つきが汚物{おぶつ}を見{み}るそれに変{か}わった。」


texts: What is the difference between ことにする and ことにした?

texts:
みんなの日本語 中級I - Lesson 3 says that V (dictionary form) ことにする is used to express the decision to do something. If I say

  私は日本へ行くことにしました。

this can be translated as “I decided to go to Japan”. This is perfectly clear to me. However, what is the correct translation for

  私は日本へ行くことにします。

? Is it “I will decide to go to Japan”, “I decide to go to Japan”, or “I decided to go to Japan”? Can you explain to me when to use する in non-past tense?


texts:
ごくろうさん
  gokurousan
   【ご苦労さん · 御苦労さん】

  expression meaning:
  I appreciate your efforts

  アリさん、今日もご苦労さんだよ。はい、角砂糖あげるよ。 Hi Mr Ant, keeping up the good work today as well. Here's a sugar cube.

ご is the honorific, 苦労 means trouble or hardships, but does the さん have the same meaning of さま when it means "state"?


texts: What is the difference between 混ぜる and かき混ぜる?

texts: According to my dictionary, both 混ぜる and かき混ぜる mean "to mix" or "to stir". But what is the difference between the two? Unfortunately, the dictionary does not provide any additional information and I couldn't make out any difference in the example sentences I looked at.


texts:
Is バッチリ a generally used, non-slangy, and well recognised word?

I couldn't find the word in jisho.org or the Japanese edition of Wiktionary. I could find it in weblio, and apparently it means "excellent", but when it was listing examples, two of the three examples seemed unrelated ("除去可能なサセプタを伴う熱バッチリアクタ" and "バッチリアクター内でのＴｉＮ膜の堆積", which were examples involving the katakana word for "batch" instead).


texts:
「話すことができぬでも、頷くぐらいはできるだろう」
It's from a videogame, the story takes place in the past.
It means "You can't talk, but you can nod at least!", am I right?
I don't understand the way it's written. Why isn't it 話すことができぬが、? Or 話すことができぬ。でも、?


texts: たらしめる? ex: "素晴らしいfontを素晴らしいものたらしめているのは何かについて学んだ。"

texts:
素晴らしいcalligraphyを素晴らしいものたらしめているのは何かについて学んだ。

I studied what makes great calligraphy to be great.

With regard to たらしめる I don't understand that sentence structure. The presence of を means there must be a transitive verb in play (たらしめる?). But, what is もの doing there?

Basically, with regard to sentence structure, what part of speech is "もの"? What does it modify or what is it modified by?


texts: Why can 髪の毛 only refer to hair on your head?

texts: I've never really understood why there is a difference between 髪の毛 and 毛　when talking about hair on one's body. What is it about 髪 that makes it only relevant in the context of having "hair on the head"? Why wouldn't I be able to call hair 髪の毛 if it was in a different area?


texts:
This comes from a previous previous question with what I find to be a confusing explanation.
Generally, の中で is presented in all of the English language resources I could find to be an atomic thing that lets one express the idea "from within these. "
For example (pulled from Bunpro):

この中で一つを選んでください。

グループの中で色々な意見がありました。

When not presented after a demonstritive pronoun で can suffice.

グループで色々な意見がありました。

の中で can also just mean "within" like で on its own:

公園の中で子供達が遊んでいた。

From the link to the previous Stack Exchange question, it seems that the first usage of の中で can be replaced by の中から:

この中から一つを選んでください。

グループの中から色々な意見がありました。

However, the answers seemed to both indicate that this is ungrammatical:

私はその中で好きな家を借りました

Since で should be から because the verb is 借る. Why is this? What makes 借る different here?


texts: Is "あらら" (arara) a word or just a "vocal noise"?

texts:
A friend just wrote this as a comment on a photo of mine on Facebook.

Is it an actual word or is it what I call a "vocal noise"?

By "vocal noise" I mean those things which convey some meaning but they're not really lexical and can't be used like regular words. Examples in English include "shhh", "zzz", and "tsk tsk".


texts: If someone says you're being silly and you don't know why, should you ask 何ですか？ or なぜですか？

texts:
I'm confused because in sites like this one.

They define 何ですか as what and なぜですか as why. But in other sides I saw 何ですか defined as why too.

So, what would be the best way to handle the question in the title (I'm open to other options.)

Example conversation:

  Speaker A: Dude, you're being cringey now.

  Speaker B: Why (do you say that)?


texts: Extracting from, and introducing to Universe of Discourse using は and が with こそあど-demonstratives

texts:
Consider the following:

  このりんご（ は / が ）食べないでください。
  Person A: どちらが東ですか。

  　Person B：　こちら（ は / が ）東です。

  Workbook answers are は for 1. and が for 2.

In 1., I would expect the person to be pointing at the apple or at least gesturing with body language towards the apple. Furthermore the apple is physically present within proximity of the speaker as evidenced by use of "この". Therefore the apple is already present in the "universe of discourse" and the use of は to extract it from the "universe of discourse" is justified.
In 2., Discourse is introduced by person A. The workbook chooses が as the correct answer.

(Observations) The apple is tangible while direction is intangible. However, both are present in the "universe of discourse". "Direction" is part of "immediate environment" and I should always be able to refer to immediate environment using は since it's shared information between two parties.

(Question) Can't I similarly take "direction" as already present in the "universe of discourse" and use は to refer to it in 2.?

EDIT: Concept of "Universe of Discourse" taken from jkerian's answer


texts:
From here

珍道中
読み方：ちんどうちゅう

めずらしい旅。旅の途中で珍奇な出来事にまま遭遇するような旅のこと。

What does まま modify here, what clause(word?) is it part of?


texts:
The sentence is:

  俯伏{うつぶ}しに延｛の｝び切｛き｝った身体｛からだ｝を縮｛ちぢ｝めて一寸{ちょっと}腰｛こし｝の所｛ところ｝を高｛たか｝くした。

For context, this is a short story by Naoya Shiga, the name is 「十一月三日午後の事」. Right before this sentence, the subject of this sentence trips and falls face down and is very exhausted. He has someone trying to help him up, and he is trying to get up as well.

I know the meanings of the words individually or the probable meaning for those that have more than one, however, I'm unable to picture what the author is trying to say.

Later on, the author describes this action as

  芝居{しばい}で殺｛ころ｝された奴｛やつ｝が俯伏｛うつぶ｝しになった場合｛ばあい｝よくそう云｛い｝う動作｛どうさ｝をする。

I took this to mean "In a play, when the guy who gets killed is lying face down, he often does this action."

However, I still can't put together what the author means.


texts: What is the proper way to address the Emperor in person？

texts: Is there a proper way to address the Emperor of Japan when meeting in person? Is he addressed as 天皇 or 天皇陛下?


texts:
For example, if I wanted to say:
"I thought it would be difficult." (Didn't attempt it, thought it seemed difficult)
Is there a way to translate this directly to japanese or am I limited to:
「難しいと思った」(Attempted it and thought it was difficult)?


texts:
It is said by a boy who was running away from a danger situation.

Is it an alternated version of the word 「助ける」? Which dialect is it?


texts: How do I say "you can do/find/use A, B and C"

texts:
Where A = 検索, B = タグ, C = フォロー. I thought of saying these but they don't look right. What seems to be best way to say this?

検索したり、タグを使ったり、フォローしたりすることができます
検索機能やタグやフォローボタンがあります
検索機能やタグやフォローボタン利用することができます

Also, I am writing it as a instruction on a website that these functions are on the sidebar. Should I use 敬語? Which verb should I choose to convert to 敬語?


texts:
So I'm trying to translate this song (full lyrics at https://www5.atwiki.jp/hmiku/pages/35243.html, if anyone's interested), and I came across these lines which I'm not sure about:
恋と飾って　静かな方へ　汚れきった言葉を
Now I think the first phrase would mean "decorate with love," "with" as in, love and another person are decorating together? I couldn't find any other use of と with 飾る besides, "together with", though that doesn't make much sense to me.
As for the second phrase, "Towards quietness" is all I can get out of it, and I would think to translate it, combining it with the last phrase, as "In a rather quiet way, the words had become dirty." But I feel like that leaves a lot out, especially because it doesn't get the へ in there, but I'm lost as to how to include that.
Thank you for your help!


texts: Are Japanese counter words still being created?

texts:
That is, are counters (助数詞) an open class of words?

If yes: Is there an example of a counter that was added recently (say, post-Taishō) and is now in current use by a community of speakers (i.e. not a single writer)?

If no: When did new counters stop popping up in the historical record (that is, when was the last period during which counter-words were an open class)? There were precious few counter-words in Nara-period Old Japanese (-chi, -ri, -ka, "pillar" -hashira for gods), and there's an awful lot now; therefore the class must have been open at some period.  The standard hypothesis seems to be that the Heian-era influx of Chinese influence expanded usage of counters (by influence of Chinese classifiers/measure-words); but did they stop adding counters soon after, or did they keep expanding the set up until later periods?

For this question, I'm interested in grammatical counter-words like 個、匹、本、羽 etc.  A counter-word doesn't just quantify general measures, as in "3 kilos of flour/lettuce/uranium" or "3MB of data/bandwidth/free memory"; it's also bound to specific sets of words, effectively dividing the lexicon into classes, which it counts in natural units (small animals are counted as 匹, except rabbits which are lumped with birds into 羽, while roundish objects are counted as 個, etc.).  Counter-words are also distinct from nouns like ダウンロード in 一万ダウンロード、 in that they can be used to count different nouns in syntactically anaphoric constructions like:

３個のりんごを食べた。
ポケモンは3匹ゲットした。


texts:
たまに would mean occasionally/once in a while right?

how can we translate んだ in this context? or is it just an expression?
if the translation is wrong, do tell me.

  Text: たまにはなプレゼントをもらっていいと思うんだ。
  Translation: I think it is okay to receive present once in a while

よろしくお願いします！


texts: What are the differences between these words meaning "Frequently" or "many times"?

texts: I've came across 「何度も」、「何度か」、「度々」、「しばしば」、「しきりに」、「よく」


texts: Do Commas Have Any Impact On Meaning In Smaller Sentences?

texts:
Playing a game I encountered two different shop keeps that say the same line. Only one says a line with a comma, the other says it without.  I do know that commas can help in breaking up clauses in Japanese, but do commas have any impact on meaning in small sentences like these?  Or does it more describe how it would be spoken?

また、来て下さいね。
また来て下さいね。


texts: How does には work in 10年は待つには長い時間だ, following a verb?

texts:
10年は待つには長い時間だ

In what situation can には follow a verb like in the above sentence and what is the function of it here?


texts: Saying something was happening when something happened

texts:
I want to know what is the form for "when" in a phrase like "I was reading a book, when someone knocked on my door." I'm aware of the usage of "toki" in phrases like "When I was a teacher..." and "When I talk to someone, they run away...," but I'm not sure if I can use "toki" for "when" in the phrase I want to write ( I was reading a book, when someone knocked on my door and I had to stop reading the book ) . For example, I'm not sure if this phrase with "toki" does that.

"私は本を読んでいたとき、彼が何か話した"

Because it looks like it means "When I was reading a book, he said something" which isn't quite what I want to reach.

"I was reading a book, when he said something" < - Is what I want to know how to write

"When I was reading a book, he said something" ! < - There is a difference


texts: Using 「呟く」 while speaking with someone else

texts:
Following Mindful suggestion here, I'm opening this question following that one: in there, Mindful explained that the main difference between 「つぶやく」 and 「ささやく」 is that, I quote:

you want 囁く when you are talking about whispering something to someone. 呟く on the other hand is also often translated as mumble or mutter, English words which better express the idea that the thing being said is not intended to be heard by anyone but the speaker

My doubt arises from short stories I'm reading, in which 「つぶやく」 is used when a character is speaking with another, seemingly with the intention of being heard, and the other characters seems to hear it:

彼女が困ったように視線を地面に走らせながら、
「あの、家まで送ってくれない？こんな遅くまで働いたことはなかったから」と小さな声でつぶやいた。
「ああ、そうかー」
僕はアルバイトのシフトに入るとき、彼女が必ず「早番」の時間帯を選ぶことを思い出した。

In this case the girl is asking the protagonist to walk her home, and it doesn't seem she doesn't want to be heard; the character does hear her.
So I was wondering: does this have any implications about the speaker not wanting to be heard, or 「つぶやく」 can just be used to speak to others?
Edit: a little more context: as far as I can understand the only relationship between them is professional, both work at the same restaurant; a little later on she says that she always asks for early shifts because she is afraid of the night (夜がー怖いから), but that day she had to stay untile late, so the request to be walked home seems to be honest, not just a front to keep the relationship. Here's the page: https://imgur.com/t4SW9JN.


texts: Difference between embedded question and noun phrase

texts:
Inspired by this question, I thought of two ways to talk about checking the truth of something, though I think my question applies much more generally than with just the verb 'to check'.

雪が溶けていることを確認した。
雪が溶けているか(を)確認した。
I checked to see if the snow had melted.

My suspicion is that in the first sentence I am making the assumption that the snow has melted and I am simply verifying my assumption. Whereas, in the second sentence, I have no initial theory on what the result will be.
Are my sentences both valid? Is my theory correct? What did I get wrong?


texts:
そしてそのまま顔をうつむかせ、「ぅえ……っ、ぇ……っ」と嗚咽を漏らし始める。
  そして、ウサギの耳付きフードをきゅっと握って顔をうつむけ、目元を隠すようにしながらたどたどしく言ってくる。

Hi. Can we use 俯かせる and 俯ける interchangeably in the above two example? Are 俯かせる and 俯ける the same?
Thank you.


texts:
I was wondering how I should or could translate "no koto da" as in

僕が六歳だったときのことだ。?

I get the general meaning of the sentence, but I have no idea what the meaning of
こと (koto) in this case is.


texts: How are items enumerated in Japanese restaurant menus?

texts:
I've been asked to render a restaurant menu in Japanese, even though I'm not very good with the language (don’t ask).  The original menu has ingredient lists for each entry, usually like this:

  Spam, bacon, sausage, eggs, ham.

But also like this:

  Spam, bacon, and eggs.

And sometimes like this:

  Spam on bread with sausages, bacon, and ham.

My question is, how are these lists normally presented in Japanese restaurant menus? Should I make them like the original with commas, i.e. this:

  スパム、ベーコン、ソーセージ、卵、ハム。

Or do they use a lot of とs like this?

  スパムとベーコンとソーセージと卵とハム。

Or something else?

And for the last example above, is it weird to do a direct rendering like this?:

  ブレッドにスパムとソーセージとベーコンとハム。

What's a natural/nonawkward way of expressing such enumerations?


texts: Translating ～ほうがいい as 'should' -- why does this seem rare?

texts:
In all of the resources I use (incl Genki, A Dictionary of Basic Japanese Grammar, various websites), the ～ほうがいい construction is nearly universally translated "had better ~" and rarely includes the word "should ~". This is while noting that ～ほうがいい is a polite suggestion. Nearly all example sentences I find use the translation "had better ~".
As a native speaker of English (Eastern Canada), the phrase "You'd better ~" rings quite assertive and somewhat condescending, and in polite speech I would rarely elect to use that phrase over "should". In fact, "You'd better ~" would be reserved for people I was familiar and casual with.
Is it wrong to translate the phrase ～ほうがいい as "should" in the typical case, or to use it where I would use "should" in English?


texts: Whether まで should be used or に to determine place of destination？

texts:
Pre-Text: Both まで and に can be used to determine the place of movement/destination.

Hi, I was studying, these two Particles, I came across a situation regarding whether to use まで or に which I couldn't get an answer because both were having the same function in the context.

E.g.

  埼玉から東京に行きます (I will go from Saitama to Tokyo)
   埼玉から東京まで行きます (I will go from Saitama to Tokyo)

So, Could you please help by answering the following questions:

Which one of them is correct?
How do you determine whether to use まで or に, under similar situation?
Are there any rules of choosing them under a particular situation?


texts: How is it written deposit money by coin?

texts:
Recently I want to change my massive coin into money . I heard about I can change coin to bank account money at ATM in Tokyo , so I went to bank ATM . But I couldn't choose English language on screen so I came back without doing anything .

I want to know what will it written of deposit coin into bank account in Japanese ?


texts: In a work e-mail, what is the correct way to refer to one's wife who is a coworker?

texts:
Japanese
背景
今年度、私の妻は就職できました。今年の4月から、2人とも同じ職場で大学の教員として勤めています。というわけで今回の質問です。就職時に色々な事務手続きをしなければなりません。その中で、私は事務担当者にメールを作成中です。メールの相手先は事務担当者ですが、妻にもCCしています。
質問
職場で、自分の配偶者をメールでどのように呼ぶのが丁寧でしょうか。
身内に対して「X先生」を使うのは大丈夫ですか。それとも、それは「身内か外部の人か」のパターンに関係する失礼な言い方にあたりますか。どの呼び方を使用するのが一番丁寧ですか。
English
Background
This year, my wife started working here in Japan. From this April, we are both university instructors. And that leads to this question. There's all sorts of paperwork for her starting work, and in the process I was e-mailing one of the administrative staff and copied my wife on the e-mail.
Question
At work, what is the correct way to address one's own spouse in e-mails?
Is it okay in a work context to refer to one's spouse as X先生? Or is that inappropriate due to the in-group / out-group patterns. What is the most appropriate way to refer?


texts:
This sentence recently appeared in one of my N1 training books:

彼女が合格する可能性はなきにしもあらずだが、彼がパスする可能性はなきにひとしい。
My translation: While she may have a slight chance of passing the exam, it is hopeless for him. (lit. his chances are the same as nothing)

Is [なきにしもあらず~なきに] a set phrase that often/always comes as a pair? Or can I use 「なきにしもあらず」 also without the following contrasting 「なきに」 and still sound natural?


texts:
A：「おいしかったね、あの店。また行こうね。」

B: 「あ！店にけいたい電話おいてきてしまったからとりにもどらないと。」

I don't really understand the function or meaning of ~きて here. Could someone help me parse this part grammatically? Why おいてきてしまった instead of おいてしまった?


texts:
1) Original sentence: 日本語ができると旅行がしやすくなって便利だと思いますよ。

If I write it as 日本語ができると旅行するがやすくなって便利だと思いますよ。

Is it grammatically correct and does it mean the same thing? If it is wrong, why is it wrong?

2) Also, another example, 昨日買物をしに行きました
If I write it as 昨日買い物していきました is it also the same meaning and is it grammatically correct

If it is the same meaning, is there any reason to use the sentence structure with し instead of suru/-te form?