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1500 questions
16
votes
1 answer
Temperature abbreviations?
A certain dialog in my book has a man describing the symptoms of his cold to the doctor. It reads thus:
医者：熱はありますか。
患者：はい、きのうから。夕べはぞくぞく寒気がしたので、高熱が出るんじゃないかとひやひやしたんですが、今のところ７度８分【なな・ど・はち・ぶ】くらいでおさまっています。
The English translation on the next page…
istrasci
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16
votes
4 answers
Are wasei-eigo and wasei-kango looked down upon?
Is wasei-eigo or wasei-kango looked down upon by Japanese language purists (as opposed to English or Chinese purists!) as informal, inauthentic, incorrect or the like?
Golden Cuy
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16
votes
2 answers
How does adding 手 to the beginning of an adjective change its meaning?
There are several adjectives that are formed by attaching 「手」 to more common adjectives:
手厳しい
手堅い
手早い
手広い
手短い
But most of the time this does not seem to change the meaning of the adjective very much.
厳しい severe; strict; rigid
手厳しい severe;…
Amanda S
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16
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1 answer
16
votes
1 answer
What is the purpose of adding と?
For example:
柔和{にゅうわ}な線{せん}で縁取{ふちど}られた宝石{ほうせき}のような瞳{ひとみ}に、ほっそりとした顎{あご}、綺麗{きれい}な鼻筋{はなすじ}。美人{びじん}っていう人{ひと}の条件{じょうけん}しっかりと備{ととの}えちゃってる。
What is the purpose of the と in ほっそりとした instead of just saying ほっそりした?
Also what's the difference the following…
Tomm
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16
votes
2 answers
Do Japanese actually pronounce the "v" sound?
Do Japanese actually pronounce the "v" sound? They do have a kana character (ヴ) dedicated to transcribing foreign "v" sounds, but do they actually pronounce them like the English phoneme /v/ (using the upper teeth and the lower lip)? Or is it like a…
Vun-Hugh Vaw
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16
votes
3 answers
Can 「XければXほどY」 clause pattern be shortened to 「XほどY」?
There is a clause pattern 「XければXほどY」. For example, 「近【ちか】ければ近【ちか】いほど便【べん】利【り】」 which means something like "the nearer it is, the more convenient it will be". Can I shorten the clause to 「近【ちか】いほど便【べん】利【り】」? Will it have the same meaning?
But I have…
Lukman
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16
votes
2 answers
て versus combining-form for joining clauses
Is there a difference between these two sentences
昨日はビールを飲んでパイを食べました。
昨日はビールを飲みパイを食べました。
More generally, when should I choose one form over the other?
user3856370
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16
votes
1 answer
Use of する to describe one's colour
From Japanesepod101:
象は灰色をしている。
The elephant is gray.
The meaning of the sentence is not in doubt but I've been trying to figure how する is being used here. Checking a dictionary, definition 2エ might be applicable here.
ある状態・性質であることを示す。(To show…
Viridian
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16
votes
2 answers
How should I start an email when requesting something from someone I don't know well?
In English, there is a certain etiquette to follow when writing a business letter. From what I've seen so far, the same seems to be true in Japanese as well.
If I was making a business-related request to someone who has helped me a lot in the past,…
Troyen
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16
votes
1 answer
General applicability of the ～ませ conjugation
I have only found the ～ませ conjugation used in the following honorific verbs:
いらっしゃいませ
くださいませ
なさいませ
Can the conjugation be applied to other honorific verbs, like おっしゃいませ or めしあがりませ?
Or even common verbs, like がんばりませ or つづきませ?
Lukman
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16
votes
3 answers
Why are the names of plants and animals often written in katakana?
I was wondering why fruits, vegetables, animals and plants, are written in katakana? Often, there exist kanjis for those, so why aren't they written with those kanjis instead? For example:
カマキリ instead of 蟷螂
ヒマワリ instead of 向日葵
シイタケ instead of…
Jaume
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16
votes
3 answers
Why is 一緒に correct and 一緒で incorrect?
This is a mistake I habitually make, even though I know what the right form is.
Earlier tonight, I wanted to tell my friend "Let's go together!", so I sent a mail saying:
一緒{いっしょ}で行{い}こう！
My friend sent back a mail :
はい、一緒{いっしょ}に行{い}こう ;)
...…
Questioner
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16
votes
4 answers
～て vs ～てから for sequencing activities
This is potentially much simpler than I'm expecting but when simply ordering events within a sequence are there any contextual differences between using ～て and ～てから?
For example, if I was talking about my morning routine and wanted to say I eat…
mattb
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16
votes
2 answers
meanings of 「書{か}いてある」 and 「書かれている」
I think that these sentences might have similar meanings:
犬{いぬ}についての記事{きじ}が朝日{あさひ}新聞{しんぶん}に書いてあります。
犬についての記事が朝日新聞に書かれています。
I think that the direct translations are:
There is an article about dogs that is written in the Asahi Shinbun (there…
user312440
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