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2 answers

い-Adjective Conjugation: かったです vs でした

When we first studied adjective conjugation in my Japanese class, I kept making the same mistake habitually; I would conjugate the past tense of い-adjectives with でした at the end instead of dropping the い and adding かったです. My teacher would correct…
atlantiza
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Are there no rounded or circular strokes in any 漢字？

Forgive me if this question seems foolish, but perhaps curiosity has gotten the best of me 'cause I am asking away. Every time I sit down to practice some good ol' kanji writing, I can't help but notice the lack of rounded shapes, circles, spheres,…
Butterbean
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What do you say when giving something to somebody?

In English when you hold out something to someone, sometimes a vocal prompt like "here" or "there" is said to indicate that you are giving it to the person. In Chinese (or at least in Singapore) we sometimes use something that sounds like "na" or…
Flaw
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Nuances in the word "smile"

So as the title indicates, I'm wondering about exactly what is the difference between all the existing words that mean "smile", I originally learned only 笑い, which I feel is the most regularly used one (although it can also means a laugh), but as…
FMB
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Is there a particular name for the rows and columns of the hiragana/katakana charts?

When i see Hiragana/Katakana Charts i see them always take a form similar to this i see a logical pattern here (except for ん but it's a one off). i am wondering is there a particular name for the rows and columns of the hiragana/katakana charts?…
Memor-X
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What is the difference between のに and には?

I came accross : 行くのに１時間かかる。 行くには１時間かかる。 And someone told me I could say : 行くのには１時間かかる。 So I would like to know the difference between all these in details please, thanks
Tchang
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Verb volitional form (動詞の意志形) - usage

I have a couple of questions about the volitional form of verbs that I've become unclear on lately. Here is a Bible passage containing the grammar in question: (Note that I'm using a Bible passage as I have before because it directly relates to the…
istrasci
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How to say to "persuade into doing something"?

I am looking for a Japanese phrase or an idiom which could be used to describe a situation in which a person A persuades person B into doing something, not required for the person B, but beneficial to the A. Like selling a trekking map for a very…
macraf
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一応: Usage and meaning

I've never really fully grasped the meaning of [一]{いち}[応]{おう} since it seems to have no good English equivalent. What is the meaning, usage, and nuances of 一応?
Muhd
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です after some verbs (ほしいです)

I've learned that です means something like the state of being, or close to the "be" verb. Recently I found the following phrase: 犬がほしいです。 Why does it end with です if I am saying that "I want a dog"? (the verb is "want").
Thiago Fassina
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What is this English doing in the middle of my Japanese?

Note: I understand this question is on the edge of being off topic. I'll accept the community assessement if enough people feel that is the case. I'm reading 脳{のう}は0.1秒{びょう}で恋{こい}をする by 茂木{もぎ}健一郎{けんいちろう}, and out of the blue, there's an English word…
Questioner
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のか - Particle "lamenting reflections on the preceding statement". What?

I've come across this sentence in my manga. そ　そうか　そういう疑いを持っているのか It's actually fairly easy, but the particle at the end has confused me. I thought it was the two particles の and か, but then I saw this in a dictionary: のか - Particle - endorsing…
AlbeyAmakiir
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Difference between だろうか and ではないだろうか

In my opinion, they both share the same meaning of "~, isn't it". However, it seems that they cannot be used interchangeably. For example, in the following sentence, according to my mock exam textbook, ではないだろうか is correct for ＿＿ but not だろうか…
reFORtEM
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Native Japanese word for フリー

I wonder why all the translation engines show only the word フリー as a translation for the word "free". Why Japanese people had to borrow an english word? Wasn't there anything for free in Japanese history? Does the native Japanese word for "free"…
Paul
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Dakuten used in non-standard ways (like with vowels)?

Sometimes in manga I encounter dakuten used in unexpected ways. For example, I've seen it used after あ. I wonder what effect it has on the pronunciation. Does it basically mean that the voice is getting stronger\louder? Is this used outside of manga…
kuchitsu
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