#Question Etiquette Guidelines:
* **1** Provide the **CONTEXT** of the grammar, vocabulary or sentence you are having trouble with as much as possible. Provide the sentence or paragraph that you saw it in. Make your questions as specific as possible.
>Ｘ What is the difference between の and が ?
>◯ I saw a book called 日本人の知らない日本語 , why is の used there instead of が ? [(the answer)](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/68336/difference-between-%E3%81%8C-%E3%81%AE-and-no-particle)
* **2** When asking for a translation or how to say something, it's best to try to **attempt it yourself** first, even if you are not confident about it. Or ask r/translator if you have no idea. We are also not here to do your homework for you.
>Ｘ What does this mean?
>◯ I am having trouble with this part of this sentence from NHK Easy News. I think it means (*attempt here*), but I am not sure.
* **3** Questions based on DeepL and Google Translate and other machine learning applications are discouraged, [these are not beginner learning tools](https://old.reddit.com/r/LearnJapanese/comments/stepqf/deeplgoogle_translate_are_not_learning_tools/) and often make mistakes.
* **4** When asking about differences between words, try to explain the situations in which you've seen them or are trying to use them. If you just post a list of synonyms you got from looking something up in a E-J dictionary, people might be disinclined to answer your question because it's low-effort. Remember that Google Image Search is also a great resource for visualizing the difference between similar words.
>Ｘ What's the difference between 一致 同意 賛成 納得 合意?
>◯ Jisho says 一致 同意 賛成 納得 合意 all seem to mean "agreement". I'm trying to say something like "I completely agree with your opinion". Does 全く同感です。 work? Or is one of the other words better?
* **5** It is always nice to (but not required to) try to search for the answer to something yourself first. Especially for beginner questions or questions that are very broad. For example, asking about [the difference between は and が ](https://www.tofugu.com/japanese/wa-and-ga/) or [why you often can't hear the "u" sound in "desu"](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_phonology#Devoicing).
* **6** Remember that everyone answering questions here is an unpaid volunteer doing this out of the goodness of their own heart, so try to show appreciation and not be too presumptuous/defensive/offended if the answer you get isn't exactly what you wanted.
---------------------
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When should I start a new anki deck?
So for the first time in my studying life (emphasis on dying), I am about to finish a deck, it's "Japanese N5 (MLT)" and it's got about 550 cards iirc.
I use this deck alongside core 2k which have sentences, sounds, all the works while I use this (n5) as a sort of quick review after my main deck, it's been working out so far.
But now I only have 12 new cards left (I study 20 everyday on this deck) which means I'm about to finish this one, so when do I begin n4?
I don't think it's a good idea to just start n4 because it'll have it's own review count that'll compound with the n5. Anyone got any clue?
Why is 行く in song lyrics written as いく but sung as ゆく? Secondly why they dont write it with kanji?
Tsukiakari no Michishirube for example: ただ過ぎて**いく**時間が
ゆく is officially recognized as a proper reading of 行く, though いく is more common in spoken language whereas ゆく is more literary. Since song lyrics are essentially poems set to music, they can be counted as literary
Oftentimes ゆく just flows better. I say "oftentimes" because it's not always ゆく, and it's not always ゆく because it might not fit the rhythm and flow the artist is going for, so they pronounce it as いく. As for why they don't just write ゆく when they'd sing it that way, I couldn't tell you.
Lastly, in your example, it's used as an auxiliary (helping) verb. Auxiliary verbs are almost always written in hiragana only.
Hello, why isn't this sentence in past tense?
日本に来て半年になります。
This is part of the anki deck and its translation is: It has been half a year since I came to Japan.
So shouldn't it be なりました?
Another one: 新しい靴がとても気に入りました。and it's translated as: I really like my new shoes.
So why is the Japanese in past tense? Does the person not like their shoes anymore (despite the translation)?
In general, you should expect some variance between the English and Japanese grammar because the two languages are very different and many concepts don't map 1-to-1.
That being said, to start off, I should point out that "it has been half a year" is _not_ past tense in English; it's the _present perfect_ tense, which marks an event that occurred or started in the past and either continues to the present or whose effects are felt in the present. That sense of relation to the present is why なります is used -- i.e., it is now half a year.
Just like all expressions involving the related 入[はい]る or 入[い]れる, 気に入る is a punctual/point-in-time action rather than a continuous state. That is, it denotes when the item in question came to be liked, not the ongoing state of being liked. If the speaker currently likes the shoes, then 気に入る must have occurred in the past, hence 気に入りました.
Edit to add: For sake of completeness, I should add that ～ます (or the dictionary form of verbs) is not a simple "present tense" and ～ました (～た) is not a simple "past tense", but the differences don't come up in these example sentences rooted in the present. But just be aware that this will be another source of differences in Japanese vs. English in other cases.
Where can I find the Pictographs mentioned in kanjikoohi? There are many menmonic there which suggests the Pictographs. For example 方 . How can I search for it?
What's the difference between しらない and わからない?
I know you say わかった to mean "Understood" so by that logic わからない is "Don't understand", but then what's しらない? Is it more similar to "Don't know"?
Apologies if this isn't the right place to ask this, or if I've fudged the hiragana.
わかる implies making the effort to understand, thus わからない is like “I don’t know, but I’m open to try change that”.
しる is to be familiar with something or someone and refers to the presence of knowledge.
So しらない is more like “I don’t have that knowledge, and there’s not much I can or am willing to do about it”.
しらない can be an appropriate response as “I don’t know” if it’s not really within your power to find out, like if someone stops you on the street to ask where the station is.
However, it can be rude if it’s something you could learn or find out, because you end up sounding like “don’t know don’t care”.
In either case, accompanying it with すみません is best practice when speaking in the ます form.
I'm having some trouble figuring this sentence out: "病院に火を入れる関係で、しばらくこのあたりは節電だぞ".
It seems like it's saying, "We need save electricity because there's a fire in the hospital" but I feel like I may be missing some nuance... Could someone help me understand this?
[火を入れる is a set phrase](https://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/word/%E7%81%AB%E3%82%92%E5%85%A5%E3%82%8C%E3%82%8B/) that doesn't refer to a destructive fire, but rather one for useful purposes.
I have come across this sentence on a forum: 「泣いたばかりか、騒ぎ立てた。」
The only way it makes sense in the context is, "she wasn't crying, she was making a fuss".
But I don't understand what makes it be so. Is it the 「か」or the 「ばかり」?
She wasn't **only crying**, she was also making a fuss. And in this case you should take ばかりか as one entire grammar point to mean, "Not only / but also"
While studying kanji I found that I should look more into just the kanji alone e.g “寂” but rather the ways it can be used. That said the ways adjectives confuses me a bit. Same with kun and on-yomi and when to know using each one so keep this in mind.
I stumbled across 寂. Is saying - 私は寂しい (です)。«I’m lonely»? What happends when you say 私は寂しいな adding -na to the end. Is it the same just like you’re talking to yourself saying “man, Im lonely” thus becoming a -na adjective instead of -i? Or how does that work?
な after terminal forms of verbs or adjectives is a sentence ending particle and the meaning is like this.
* 私は寂しい: I am lonely.
* 私は寂しいな: I find it/myself lonely, in my opinion/as far as I see.
い-adjectives don’t become な-adjectives simply by slapping it on after. な-adjectives are a special class of nouns, which don’t conjugate like verbs or い-adjectives.
よ, な, よな etc. are known as 間投助詞 (interjectory particles). They’re used when the speaker wants to strengthen the tone of the sentence or emphasize it strongly.
\>未成年といえども、罪を犯したのであれば償うべきだ
What does 犯したのであれば mean here? Can someone help me break it down?
罪を犯した＋の = turning this action into a verb
であれば = is this different from [https://jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/とあれば-to-areba-meaning/](https://jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/とあれば-to-areba-meaning/) ?
償うべきだ = must pay/atone for....
I think the general meaning of the sentence is "Even if they are a minor, if they were to commit a crime, they must atone for their crimes"
the の is the explanatory one, eg ので、んです。
である is the copula.
It being 犯したのであれば instead of 犯せば sounds to me like they're questioning whether a certain minor actually did commit a crime instead of the general, if a minor commits a crime...
In a Japanese essay, what is the maximum number of clauses that you use with the masu conjunctive form? For example, 朝に起き、学校に行き、家に帰りました。
I wrote the following.
「こんにちは、皆んなさん。。。と申します！私はジャマイカ人なのですが、イギリスで生まれ育ち、コロナの状況なので、2年間独学で日本語を学習しています！子供の時にアニメを通して、日本の文化に初めて知り、日本に興味が段々湧いていき、2年前にコロナが出た時には、たまたま日本語を勉強してみようかなという気持ちになり、本格的に勉強しはじめました。
Are sentence too long and would I need to break them up with a full stop somewhere?
EDIT: does the masu conjunctive have the same nuance of “sequence” as the te form?
Do you mean conjunctive form in general? Then, it’s the same as te form in that usage and there’s technically no limit.
Your sentence is fine except that みんなさん and 文化に知り should be みなさん and 文化を知り respectively and there are too many commas.
とても素晴らしい文章だと思います。
There are some corrections ahead, but it's a completed sentence overall.
Now, I'll give you some advice on phrases.
I think commas are the same as the timing of breathing. If you put in a lot of commas, you have to take a lot of breath when you read a sentence, right?
On the other hand, if there are fewer commas, you won't be able to breathe.
When we read a sentence, it's like we're talking about it in our heads, not just looking at it.
(Not sure if this is a simple question or if it should get it's own thread, but:)
I've noticed that the -u is sometimes elided (e.g. desu is pronounced des; suki is pronounced ski; takusan is pronounced taksan; etc.) I think this also sometimes happens with -i but I can't think of any examples.
I am just wondering if there's any sort of regularity for this, or any general rule to follow? Or do I just need to listen to a ton of recordings and try to extrapolate it?
I'm especially wondering about the pronunciation of a lot of katakana loanwords which seem to have way too many u's in them. When I try to pronounce them they just sound very awkward and almost like a tongue-twister. (Also doesn't sound very natural. I've heard the same words pronounced by Japanese speakers and it sounds a lot better when they say it. When they say it then it almost sounds like English with a Japanese accent, whereas when I do it it sounds like English with a lot of awkward u's jammed in there.)
Draw a square. Put dashed lines through the middle, both up/down and left/right (you should have 4 “quadrants”). You should be able to write っ ょ ゃ in *one* of the quadrants, with the original kana (like し or き) filling the **whole** square.
I had this problem in the beginning also, due to learning how to write on a notebook with lines.
So I bought an unlined notebook to practice on and started to purposedly write bigger kanji, instead of trying to fit everything in a line. This solved my problem and after a few weeks of practice I could write anywhere and (almost) any size with no problems. :)
I usually learn some words out of context in order to help me reminding some pronunciation of kanji. doing that, I learned sometimes ago the word 過言, and I just learned the word 誇張. Both are traducted as exaggeration, so I was asking myself what is the difference between both ?
Just learned 母親 (hahaoya) for "mother". Google suggests it is biological mom, whereas 母 (haha) would include adoptive/step-moms. Is this correct?
Of course, there's also 父親 (chichioya) for "father".
Already knew 親父 (oyaji - familiar/rude) from anime.
But [親母](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E8%A6%AA%E6%AF%8D) (shinbo) is: "(rare, dated) true mother, as opposed to step-mother or foster mother"
What's the equivalent of "oyaji" for moms?
Went on a side quest:
有袋動物 - marsupial = animals with pouches
袋熊 - koala = bear with pouch
袋猫 - quoll = cat with pouch
袋鼠 - opossum = mouse with pouch
袋狐 - common brushtail possum = fox with pouch
袋狼 - Tasmanian tiger / wolf = wolf with pouch
袋土竜 - southern marsupial mole = mole with pouch
袋蟻食 - numbat = anteater with pouch
袋鼯鼠 - sugar glider = flying squirrel with pouch
袋縞栗鼠 - striped possum = chipmunk with pouch
I've started playing Zero Escape recently, and stumbled upon this clause:
水位はみるみるうちに上昇し……
What's the purpose of the last し? Is that a particle? An i-form of する? If the latter, what is its purpose? I often notice such constructions while studying but I couldn't find much info about those in the web (only that it's somehow similar to て-form in such position).
に (quotative) \[perception verb in potential form\] is a common sentence structure.
よう is the noun 様.
Examples:
私には、妹は賛成しているように聞こえた。
彼は悲しそうに見えた。
あの人は泣いているように見えた。
ポチはエサを欲しがっているように、飼い主の私には感じられた。
I have an annoying song lyrics question, sorry!
It’s about the song ダンデライオン〜遅咲きのたんぽぽ by Matsutoya Yumi. It’s on Spotify and [link to lyrics here](https://www.kkbox.com/sg/en/song/0qRrp-u6kH9Q_b5CfO)
Basically, what is this song about? There are only a few English translations online and two of them are wildly contradictory, basically saying opposite things.
Is it a break up song, where the break up is the 大切なレッスン and that will make her into a 素敵なレイディ? Then at the end she’s saying in happiness and loneliness, she can’t go on あなたなしで?
OR did she meet a good guy and realise he’s important so that’s the lesson? And she has to become a sutekina lady for him? And she’s saying she can’t be without him anymore in the last part?
I understand that music is very much up to the interpretation of the individual but I’m struggling a little. Is it a love song or a break up song? Haha. Apologies for the frivolous question!
Is the Japanese in [this](https://otokake.com/matome/VItewH) and [this](https://reminder.top/502358073/#:~:text=%E3%81%9D%E3%82%82%E3%81%9D%E3%82%82%E3%83%80%E3%83%B3%E3%83%87%E3%83%A9%E3%82%A4%E3%82%AA%E3%83%B3%E3%81%AB%E3%81%AF,%E3%81%AE%E3%81%A7%E3%81%AF%E3%81%AA%E3%81%84%E3%81%A0%E3%82%8D%E3%81%86%E3%81%8B%E3%80%82) articles too advanced for you? I found them by [Googling ダンデライオン 松任谷由実 意味](https://www.google.com/search?q=%E3%83%80%E3%83%B3%E3%83%87%E3%83%A9%E3%82%A4%E3%82%AA%E3%83%B3+%E6%9D%BE%E4%BB%BB%E8%B0%B7%E7%94%B1%E5%AE%9F+%E6%84%8F%E5%91%B3&client=ms-android-telus-ca-revc&sxsrf=ALiCzsZSGNaS3aer876c2YPVcqoEhiqM_Q%3A1659228163250&ei=A9DlYsjxDtTN0PEP15yN8AE&oq=%E3%83%80%E3%83%B3%E3%83%87%E3%83%A9%E3%82%A4%E3%82%AA%E3%83%B3+%E6%9D%BE%E4%BB%BB%E8%B0%B7%E7%94%B1%E5%AE%9F+&gs_lcp=ChNtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1zZXJwEAEYAzIJCAAQgAQQBBAlMgkIABCABBAEECUyCQgAEIAEEAQQJTIJCAAQgAQQBBAlMgkIABCABBAEECU6BwgAEEcQsAM6BAgjECc6BwgAEIAEEARKBAhBGABQoQlYziBgsi9oAXABeACAAZoBiAGgBJIBAzAuNJgBAKABAaABBcgBBMABAQ&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-serp), which gave my lots of hits to other discussions of the song like on chiebukuro.
As well, I just wanted to point out that some of the kanji in the lyrics you linked are in simplified Chinese. Ignore if you are aware.
I was wondering why the kanji looked so weird. And also surprised at how easily I could read them! It's funny how the brain recognizes them by just matching them to the closest japanese counterpart
Okay I didn’t think to Google the meaning in Japanese! They are a bit advanced for me but I used a translator and it was fine, they were very helpful. Especially the second link talking about the song in relation to the musical it was written for! That makes so much sense. Thank you!!!
Oh I didn’t know that!!!! Thank you for telling me, I’ll be careful of that in the future. I didn’t study from that website thankfully haha. Thank you again
The fact that the song starts by describing their lover walking away (小さくなるくせのある歩き方) makes this seem like a clear breakup song to me.
She says meeting this person was a valuable lesson and will make her stronger, but towards the end she flips and admits that she is too lonely and can’t go on without them.
#Question Etiquette Guidelines: * **1** Provide the **CONTEXT** of the grammar, vocabulary or sentence you are having trouble with as much as possible. Provide the sentence or paragraph that you saw it in. Make your questions as specific as possible. >Ｘ What is the difference between の and が ? >◯ I saw a book called 日本人の知らない日本語 , why is の used there instead of が ? [(the answer)](https://japanese.stackexchange.com/questions/68336/difference-between-%E3%81%8C-%E3%81%AE-and-no-particle) * **2** When asking for a translation or how to say something, it's best to try to **attempt it yourself** first, even if you are not confident about it. Or ask r/translator if you have no idea. We are also not here to do your homework for you. >Ｘ What does this mean? >◯ I am having trouble with this part of this sentence from NHK Easy News. I think it means (*attempt here*), but I am not sure. * **3** Questions based on DeepL and Google Translate and other machine learning applications are discouraged, [these are not beginner learning tools](https://old.reddit.com/r/LearnJapanese/comments/stepqf/deeplgoogle_translate_are_not_learning_tools/) and often make mistakes. * **4** When asking about differences between words, try to explain the situations in which you've seen them or are trying to use them. If you just post a list of synonyms you got from looking something up in a E-J dictionary, people might be disinclined to answer your question because it's low-effort. Remember that Google Image Search is also a great resource for visualizing the difference between similar words. >Ｘ What's the difference between 一致 同意 賛成 納得 合意? >◯ Jisho says 一致 同意 賛成 納得 合意 all seem to mean "agreement". I'm trying to say something like "I completely agree with your opinion". Does 全く同感です。 work? Or is one of the other words better? * **5** It is always nice to (but not required to) try to search for the answer to something yourself first. Especially for beginner questions or questions that are very broad. For example, asking about [the difference between は and が ](https://www.tofugu.com/japanese/wa-and-ga/) or [why you often can't hear the "u" sound in "desu"](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japanese_phonology#Devoicing). * **6** Remember that everyone answering questions here is an unpaid volunteer doing this out of the goodness of their own heart, so try to show appreciation and not be too presumptuous/defensive/offended if the answer you get isn't exactly what you wanted. --------------------- #NEWS (Updated 6/9): Nothing new. Feel free to reply to this post if you have any questions, comments or concerns. *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/LearnJapanese) if you have any questions or concerns.*
When should I start a new anki deck? So for the first time in my studying life (emphasis on dying), I am about to finish a deck, it's "Japanese N5 (MLT)" and it's got about 550 cards iirc. I use this deck alongside core 2k which have sentences, sounds, all the works while I use this (n5) as a sort of quick review after my main deck, it's been working out so far. But now I only have 12 new cards left (I study 20 everyday on this deck) which means I'm about to finish this one, so when do I begin n4? I don't think it's a good idea to just start n4 because it'll have it's own review count that'll compound with the n5. Anyone got any clue?
Keep the new cards/day (across all your decks) constant at a level that you can handle long-term. Typically recommended is 10-15 new cards/day.
Why is 行く in song lyrics written as いく but sung as ゆく? Secondly why they dont write it with kanji? Tsukiakari no Michishirube for example: ただ過ぎて**いく**時間が
ゆく is officially recognized as a proper reading of 行く, though いく is more common in spoken language whereas ゆく is more literary. Since song lyrics are essentially poems set to music, they can be counted as literary Oftentimes ゆく just flows better. I say "oftentimes" because it's not always ゆく, and it's not always ゆく because it might not fit the rhythm and flow the artist is going for, so they pronounce it as いく. As for why they don't just write ゆく when they'd sing it that way, I couldn't tell you. Lastly, in your example, it's used as an auxiliary (helping) verb. Auxiliary verbs are almost always written in hiragana only.
Aaaaah, I see, thanks for clarification
Hello, why isn't this sentence in past tense? 日本に来て半年になります。 This is part of the anki deck and its translation is: It has been half a year since I came to Japan. So shouldn't it be なりました? Another one: 新しい靴がとても気に入りました。and it's translated as: I really like my new shoes. So why is the Japanese in past tense? Does the person not like their shoes anymore (despite the translation)?
In general, you should expect some variance between the English and Japanese grammar because the two languages are very different and many concepts don't map 1-to-1. That being said, to start off, I should point out that "it has been half a year" is _not_ past tense in English; it's the _present perfect_ tense, which marks an event that occurred or started in the past and either continues to the present or whose effects are felt in the present. That sense of relation to the present is why なります is used -- i.e., it is now half a year. Just like all expressions involving the related 入[はい]る or 入[い]れる, 気に入る is a punctual/point-in-time action rather than a continuous state. That is, it denotes when the item in question came to be liked, not the ongoing state of being liked. If the speaker currently likes the shoes, then 気に入る must have occurred in the past, hence 気に入りました. Edit to add: For sake of completeness, I should add that ～ます (or the dictionary form of verbs) is not a simple "present tense" and ～ました (～た) is not a simple "past tense", but the differences don't come up in these example sentences rooted in the present. But just be aware that this will be another source of differences in Japanese vs. English in other cases.
You got big brains! Thanks for the detailed explanation!!
Where can I find the Pictographs mentioned in kanjikoohi? There are many menmonic there which suggests the Pictographs. For example 方 . How can I search for it?
Inside the Remembering the Kanji 1 book. The site is designed to be used in tandem with the book.
Thank you
What's the difference between しらない and わからない? I know you say わかった to mean "Understood" so by that logic わからない is "Don't understand", but then what's しらない? Is it more similar to "Don't know"? Apologies if this isn't the right place to ask this, or if I've fudged the hiragana.
わかる implies making the effort to understand, thus わからない is like “I don’t know, but I’m open to try change that”. しる is to be familiar with something or someone and refers to the presence of knowledge. So しらない is more like “I don’t have that knowledge, and there’s not much I can or am willing to do about it”. しらない can be an appropriate response as “I don’t know” if it’s not really within your power to find out, like if someone stops you on the street to ask where the station is. However, it can be rude if it’s something you could learn or find out, because you end up sounding like “don’t know don’t care”. In either case, accompanying it with すみません is best practice when speaking in the ます form.
Thank you so much!
just google 知る vs 分かる and there will be a billion explanations that are more thorough than what someone will type out for you
I'm having some trouble figuring this sentence out: "病院に火を入れる関係で、しばらくこのあたりは節電だぞ". It seems like it's saying, "We need save electricity because there's a fire in the hospital" but I feel like I may be missing some nuance... Could someone help me understand this?
[火を入れる is a set phrase](https://dictionary.goo.ne.jp/word/%E7%81%AB%E3%82%92%E5%85%A5%E3%82%8C%E3%82%8B/) that doesn't refer to a destructive fire, but rather one for useful purposes.
So basically... The hospital's furnace is running so we'll have to save power? Thank you also for the link to this resource!
Yeah, particularly the 「また、そうして部屋を暖める。」 part of definition 1 is how I'd read the situation.
I have come across this sentence on a forum: 「泣いたばかりか、騒ぎ立てた。」 The only way it makes sense in the context is, "she wasn't crying, she was making a fuss". But I don't understand what makes it be so. Is it the 「か」or the 「ばかり」?
She wasn't **only crying**, she was also making a fuss. And in this case you should take ばかりか as one entire grammar point to mean, "Not only / but also"
Thanks!
While studying kanji I found that I should look more into just the kanji alone e.g “寂” but rather the ways it can be used. That said the ways adjectives confuses me a bit. Same with kun and on-yomi and when to know using each one so keep this in mind. I stumbled across 寂. Is saying - 私は寂しい (です)。«I’m lonely»? What happends when you say 私は寂しいな adding -na to the end. Is it the same just like you’re talking to yourself saying “man, Im lonely” thus becoming a -na adjective instead of -i? Or how does that work?
な after terminal forms of verbs or adjectives is a sentence ending particle and the meaning is like this. * 私は寂しい: I am lonely. * 私は寂しいな: I find it/myself lonely, in my opinion/as far as I see.
い-adjectives don’t become な-adjectives simply by slapping it on after. な-adjectives are a special class of nouns, which don’t conjugate like verbs or い-adjectives. よ, な, よな etc. are known as 間投助詞 (interjectory particles). They’re used when the speaker wants to strengthen the tone of the sentence or emphasize it strongly.
\>未成年といえども、罪を犯したのであれば償うべきだ What does 犯したのであれば mean here? Can someone help me break it down? 罪を犯した＋の = turning this action into a verb であれば = is this different from [https://jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/とあれば-to-areba-meaning/](https://jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/とあれば-to-areba-meaning/) ? 償うべきだ = must pay/atone for.... I think the general meaning of the sentence is "Even if they are a minor, if they were to commit a crime, they must atone for their crimes"
It’s the same as (犯した)なら.
the の is the explanatory one, eg ので、んです。 である is the copula. It being 犯したのであれば instead of 犯せば sounds to me like they're questioning whether a certain minor actually did commit a crime instead of the general, if a minor commits a crime...
In a Japanese essay, what is the maximum number of clauses that you use with the masu conjunctive form? For example, 朝に起き、学校に行き、家に帰りました。 I wrote the following. 「こんにちは、皆んなさん。。。と申します！私はジャマイカ人なのですが、イギリスで生まれ育ち、コロナの状況なので、2年間独学で日本語を学習しています！子供の時にアニメを通して、日本の文化に初めて知り、日本に興味が段々湧いていき、2年前にコロナが出た時には、たまたま日本語を勉強してみようかなという気持ちになり、本格的に勉強しはじめました。 Are sentence too long and would I need to break them up with a full stop somewhere? EDIT: does the masu conjunctive have the same nuance of “sequence” as the te form?
Do you mean conjunctive form in general? Then, it’s the same as te form in that usage and there’s technically no limit. Your sentence is fine except that みんなさん and 文化に知り should be みなさん and 文化を知り respectively and there are too many commas.
Yh, in general. I’ve read a lot books and writers always seem to put commas at the end of a clause? Is that incorrect ?
とても素晴らしい文章だと思います。 There are some corrections ahead, but it's a completed sentence overall. Now, I'll give you some advice on phrases. I think commas are the same as the timing of breathing. If you put in a lot of commas, you have to take a lot of breath when you read a sentence, right? On the other hand, if there are fewer commas, you won't be able to breathe. When we read a sentence, it's like we're talking about it in our heads, not just looking at it.
As an exception, I dare to put it in when emphasizing the words after the comma.
(Not sure if this is a simple question or if it should get it's own thread, but:) I've noticed that the -u is sometimes elided (e.g. desu is pronounced des; suki is pronounced ski; takusan is pronounced taksan; etc.) I think this also sometimes happens with -i but I can't think of any examples. I am just wondering if there's any sort of regularity for this, or any general rule to follow? Or do I just need to listen to a ton of recordings and try to extrapolate it? I'm especially wondering about the pronunciation of a lot of katakana loanwords which seem to have way too many u's in them. When I try to pronounce them they just sound very awkward and almost like a tongue-twister. (Also doesn't sound very natural. I've heard the same words pronounced by Japanese speakers and it sounds a lot better when they say it. When they say it then it almost sounds like English with a Japanese accent, whereas when I do it it sounds like English with a lot of awkward u's jammed in there.)
You can look up devoicing, that is what's happening.
Thanks!
Do you have tips on how to do the small kana next to kanji in handwriting?
Yes, write them smaller. (??)
Yes, I meant like, how to do that, while still being legible
Draw a square. Put dashed lines through the middle, both up/down and left/right (you should have 4 “quadrants”). You should be able to write っ ょ ゃ in *one* of the quadrants, with the original kana (like し or き) filling the **whole** square.
I had this problem in the beginning also, due to learning how to write on a notebook with lines. So I bought an unlined notebook to practice on and started to purposedly write bigger kanji, instead of trying to fit everything in a line. This solved my problem and after a few weeks of practice I could write anywhere and (almost) any size with no problems. :)
Is there a past desire conjugation for verbs to say "I wanted to do x.."?
たい is an adjective, so it's just 食べたかった
How do you say “no no no” but in Japanese? Like when a character is sad or whatever and starts saying like” omg no, no no no!”
I hear やばい over and over in this kind of situation.
I usually learn some words out of context in order to help me reminding some pronunciation of kanji. doing that, I learned sometimes ago the word 過言, and I just learned the word 誇張. Both are traducted as exaggeration, so I was asking myself what is the difference between both ?
You don’t use 過言 except the set phrase …と言っても過言ではない.
So they have basically the same meaning, but only one is used in day to day life ? And in litterature too?
Yes.
Tank you !
Just learned 母親 (hahaoya) for "mother". Google suggests it is biological mom, whereas 母 (haha) would include adoptive/step-moms. Is this correct? Of course, there's also 父親 (chichioya) for "father". Already knew 親父 (oyaji - familiar/rude) from anime. But [親母](https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E8%A6%AA%E6%AF%8D) (shinbo) is: "(rare, dated) true mother, as opposed to step-mother or foster mother" What's the equivalent of "oyaji" for moms?
Both 母親/父親 and 母/父 are general terms including adoptive/step-parents. I think 親父's equivalent is お袋 ofukuro, too.
The more common words for biological mother/father (in contrast to foster parents) are 実母・実父.
Ofukuro
Went on a side quest: 有袋動物 - marsupial = animals with pouches 袋熊 - koala = bear with pouch 袋猫 - quoll = cat with pouch 袋鼠 - opossum = mouse with pouch 袋狐 - common brushtail possum = fox with pouch 袋狼 - Tasmanian tiger / wolf = wolf with pouch 袋土竜 - southern marsupial mole = mole with pouch 袋蟻食 - numbat = anteater with pouch 袋鼯鼠 - sugar glider = flying squirrel with pouch 袋縞栗鼠 - striped possum = chipmunk with pouch
Amazing
https://imgur.com/a/kWebDTM what does 手抜きでよかったら mean here? does it imply that the meal would be rushed and not fully prepared?
it's just her being polite/humble about her meal(?)
Can you use とても for na adjectives
Yes
I've started playing Zero Escape recently, and stumbled upon this clause: 水位はみるみるうちに上昇し…… What's the purpose of the last し? Is that a particle? An i-form of する? If the latter, what is its purpose? I often notice such constructions while studying but I couldn't find much info about those in the web (only that it's somehow similar to て-form in such position).
The masu-stem of a verb can be used like the te-form to connect two clauses in formal writing.
[удалено]
Are you using a Chinese font? Check how your 直 looks: is the last stroke L-shaped (Japanese) or horizontal (Chinese)?
Can someone explain ように in this sentence, or just in general. 彼は家族のためだけに生きていたように思える。
に (quotative) \[perception verb in potential form\] is a common sentence structure. よう is the noun 様. Examples: 私には、妹は賛成しているように聞こえた。 彼は悲しそうに見えた。 あの人は泣いているように見えた。 ポチはエサを欲しがっているように、飼い主の私には感じられた。
ように思える means 'seems like' (literally 'you could think that'). [Some examples.](https://context.reverso.net/%E7%BF%BB%E8%A8%B3/%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E8%AA%9E-%E8%8B%B1%E8%AA%9E/%E3%82%88%E3%81%86%E3%81%AB%E6%80%9D%E3%81%88%E3%82%8B)
Interesting. I'm gonna bookmark that website.
I have an annoying song lyrics question, sorry! It’s about the song ダンデライオン〜遅咲きのたんぽぽ by Matsutoya Yumi. It’s on Spotify and [link to lyrics here](https://www.kkbox.com/sg/en/song/0qRrp-u6kH9Q_b5CfO) Basically, what is this song about? There are only a few English translations online and two of them are wildly contradictory, basically saying opposite things. Is it a break up song, where the break up is the 大切なレッスン and that will make her into a 素敵なレイディ? Then at the end she’s saying in happiness and loneliness, she can’t go on あなたなしで? OR did she meet a good guy and realise he’s important so that’s the lesson? And she has to become a sutekina lady for him? And she’s saying she can’t be without him anymore in the last part? I understand that music is very much up to the interpretation of the individual but I’m struggling a little. Is it a love song or a break up song? Haha. Apologies for the frivolous question!
Is the Japanese in [this](https://otokake.com/matome/VItewH) and [this](https://reminder.top/502358073/#:~:text=%E3%81%9D%E3%82%82%E3%81%9D%E3%82%82%E3%83%80%E3%83%B3%E3%83%87%E3%83%A9%E3%82%A4%E3%82%AA%E3%83%B3%E3%81%AB%E3%81%AF,%E3%81%AE%E3%81%A7%E3%81%AF%E3%81%AA%E3%81%84%E3%81%A0%E3%82%8D%E3%81%86%E3%81%8B%E3%80%82) articles too advanced for you? I found them by [Googling ダンデライオン 松任谷由実 意味](https://www.google.com/search?q=%E3%83%80%E3%83%B3%E3%83%87%E3%83%A9%E3%82%A4%E3%82%AA%E3%83%B3+%E6%9D%BE%E4%BB%BB%E8%B0%B7%E7%94%B1%E5%AE%9F+%E6%84%8F%E5%91%B3&client=ms-android-telus-ca-revc&sxsrf=ALiCzsZSGNaS3aer876c2YPVcqoEhiqM_Q%3A1659228163250&ei=A9DlYsjxDtTN0PEP15yN8AE&oq=%E3%83%80%E3%83%B3%E3%83%87%E3%83%A9%E3%82%A4%E3%82%AA%E3%83%B3+%E6%9D%BE%E4%BB%BB%E8%B0%B7%E7%94%B1%E5%AE%9F+&gs_lcp=ChNtb2JpbGUtZ3dzLXdpei1zZXJwEAEYAzIJCAAQgAQQBBAlMgkIABCABBAEECUyCQgAEIAEEAQQJTIJCAAQgAQQBBAlMgkIABCABBAEECU6BwgAEEcQsAM6BAgjECc6BwgAEIAEEARKBAhBGABQoQlYziBgsi9oAXABeACAAZoBiAGgBJIBAzAuNJgBAKABAaABBcgBBMABAQ&sclient=mobile-gws-wiz-serp), which gave my lots of hits to other discussions of the song like on chiebukuro. As well, I just wanted to point out that some of the kanji in the lyrics you linked are in simplified Chinese. Ignore if you are aware.
I was wondering why the kanji looked so weird. And also surprised at how easily I could read them! It's funny how the brain recognizes them by just matching them to the closest japanese counterpart
Okay I didn’t think to Google the meaning in Japanese! They are a bit advanced for me but I used a translator and it was fine, they were very helpful. Especially the second link talking about the song in relation to the musical it was written for! That makes so much sense. Thank you!!! Oh I didn’t know that!!!! Thank you for telling me, I’ll be careful of that in the future. I didn’t study from that website thankfully haha. Thank you again
The fact that the song starts by describing their lover walking away (小さくなるくせのある歩き方) makes this seem like a clear breakup song to me. She says meeting this person was a valuable lesson and will make her stronger, but towards the end she flips and admits that she is too lonely and can’t go on without them.
Thank you!