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1500 questions
21
votes
2 answers
How do you write someone's name if you don't know what kanji to use?
Since kanji can have multiple pronunciations, how would you know how to write someone's name if you've only heard it spoken? What's the convention? Would you just guess, or maybe write it out in hiragana instead?
user1316
21
votes
1 answer
What's the difference between 一応 and とりあえず?
What's the difference between 一応{いちおう} and とりあえず?
While I think they can both mean "tentatively" or "for the time being", there seems to be a difference in their usage. How do the two translate differently into English?
After reading this Space ALC…
cypher
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21
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4 answers
Pronunciation of す in です and the end of ます verbs
I've always been curious about the pronunciation of the す in です and at the end of 〜ます verbs. Most commonly the "u" sound is inaudible, but sometimes by some people it's more pronounced, and some people really go for it.
Does it vary by age group,…
ジョン
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21
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2 answers
Why does 語 contain 五?
I'm aware the two kanji are often pronounced the same, but why does one contain the other in it?
Golden Cuy
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21
votes
4 answers
Words made from strokes of a kanji like 女 toくノ一
According to Wikipedia, one theory for the etymology of くノ一 (female ninja) is that it's made up of the strokes of the kanji 女 (woman).
Other theories include that it means nine and one, talking about the number of orifices men and women have, and…
Golden Cuy
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21
votes
4 answers
What's the difference between せっかく and わざわざ?
せっかく and わざわざ seem to be pretty close in meaning/usage, but is there ever a time you would use one and not the other? Or is there a small nuance there?
Just to give some example sentences:
「せっかく来てくれたから、昼ごはん奢るよ。」
「わざわざ美容院に行ったのに、雨で髪がくしゃくしゃになっちゃった。」
cosmiccircus
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21
votes
3 answers
What's bugging the Japanese language?
In my JLPT workbook, it has a section which gives a list of idioms that use [虫]{むし}.
仕事{しごと}の虫 (worker bee)
点取{てんとり}虫 (derogatory term for a student who tries too hard)
虫がいい (selfish)
泣{な}き虫 (cry baby)
弱{よわ}虫 (weakling)
腹{はら}の虫がおさまらない (extremely…
Questioner
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21
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2 answers
Reading of 入る - 「はいる」 vs 「いる」
Sometimes I'm having trouble choosing the reading for 入る. There was a related question about the reading of 入れる, however my JMdict-based dictionary marks both 入る{はいる} and 入る{いる} as intransitive verbs (自動詞) - is it correct? If so, then how to…
kroki
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21
votes
3 answers
Is the word 「やんな」positive or negative?
I found that in a website 〜やんな is a colloquial form of 〜やるな meaning 'Don't do...'
However, I have seen the word in a manga with the following sentence.
A: おい あかりを消してやんな。新入りさんがまぶしくてねむれんといかん。
B: じゃあ 消すぜ
While B speaking, he also turning off the…
George
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21
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4 answers
Odd use of も has me stumped 「ソウルにいるのも今夜きりです」
So I'm working through Makino and Tsutsui's Dictionary of Advanced Japanese Grammar, and I came across this sentence:
ソウルにいるのも今夜きりです。
This is my last night left in Seoul.
The entry is about teaching きり, which I understand just fine. What I can't…
JPlearner1
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21
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4 answers
Commonness of casual phrases like "あたし" and "ちっちゃい"
I came across a Japanese girl in Germany who talked using words like あたし instead of わたし, or ちっちゃい instead of ちいさい. When I asked her, she said that these words or usages of words are more common in Japan.
Is this true?
How does the majority of…
Herr
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21
votes
7 answers
Japanese kanji with different meanings in Chinese
湯 in Japanese refers to "hot water." In Chinese, it means "soup." How common are kanji with different meanings in Chinese? Also, why do differences occur in the first place? Were the meanings in both languages originally the same and gradually…
Alan C
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21
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1 answer
Difference between 向け and 向き
My boss just corrected one of my documents from 企業向きな開発 to 企業向けの開発.
Apart from the の/な problem that I always get wrong, is there a problem with 向き ?
I got it from my textbook that says 子供向きです
Could someone shed some light on when to use one or the…
Nicolas Raoul
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21
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5 answers
Modern names of the obsolete kana ゑ and ゐ
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…
Mechanical snail
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21
votes
2 answers
Plain verbs that end with ぬ other than 死ぬ
Are there any other verbs than 死ぬ whose plain forms end with ぬ? Why are they so rare? Is it because the verb 死ぬ itself has special etymology why it ended up having the ぬ ending?
Lukman
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