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This new level of IMABI will eventually contain two levels of 50 lessons. Afterward, a graveyard of miscellaneous/esoteric topics will follow. This will increase the utility of lessons in each level. Currently, the veteran level is largely contained of topics that you don't really need to delve much into in order to be a fluent speaker. Not all lessons necessarily even have any instruction.
第302課: The Particles やら, なり, & きり
第311課: Similarity II: ~ごとく, ~さながら、& ~しかず
第312課: The Traditional Calendar System
第313課: Numbers VIII: 概数 & Reading the 九九
第314課: Numbers IX: Decimals, Fractions, 大字, & Large Numbers
第315課: Numbers X: Measurements
第316課: Miss out: ~残す, ~漏らす, ~損なう, ~そびれる, ~損じる, & ~逃す
第317課: More Endings I: ~果てる ~付ける・く, ~立てる・つ, ~尽くす,& ~こなす
第318課: More Endings II: ~返る・す, ~捲る, ~殴る, ~腐る, & ~通す
第319課: Locational: ~渡る・す, ~出る・す, ~上がる・げる, ~入る・れる, ~下がる・げる, ~降りる・ろす, ~落ちる・とす, & ~回る・す
第320課: Final Endings: ~こける, ~さす, ~倦む・ねる, ~逸れる, ~成す, & ~古す
第321課: The Volitional III: The Adjectival Volitional & Older Volitional Forms
第323課: The Causative III: ~かす Verbs
第326課: Native Suffixes I: Nominal I
第327課: Native Suffixes II: Nominal II
第328課: Native Suffixes III: Adjectival & Adverbial
第329課: Native Suffixes IV: Verbal
第330課: Sino-Japanese Suffixes I
第331課: Sino-Japanese Suffixes II
第332課: Suffixes of Appearance: ~だらけ, ~まみれ, ~ずくめ, ~めく, ~げ, & ~気
第334課: Honorifics VI: Irregular Verbs II
第???課: ~ために III: ~んがために & ~がために
第337課: The Causative IV: ~しめる & ~させ給う
第338課: Interrogatives IV: Rare Words
第340課: The Auxiliary ~たる: ~たるや, ~たるもの, & ~たりとも
This lesson will be about the words 思しい and 思わしい. These two words both translate as "to appear to be." They are largely used in literature while only seldom used in conversation, and they are arguably etymologically the same word.
Etymological Confusion
The root /obo-/ is the same thing as /omo-/. Meaning, 思う, 覚える, and the like are etymologically related. Japanese once had /mb/ as a phoneme. As for 思しき, many sources claim that it comes from the verb 思す. This verb comes from 思ほす, which comes from 思はす (思わす). 思しい comes from attaching /–shi/ to this. This is similar to other words like 願わしい (desirable) from 願う. 思しい is clearly etymologically the same as 思わしい. The only difference is that the former form shows sign of extra sound change than the latter.
Definitions
First, we will look at several dictionary endings for the two to see if we can deduce any important information. The first dictionary to look at is Edition 5 of the 広辞苑 .
思しい・覚しい
① (…と)思われる。そのように見受けられる。
② こうありたいと思われる。
思わしい
(多く打消の語を伴って)好ましく思われる。気にいる。
Google’s dictionary says the following.
▽思しい/覚しい
① (「…とおぼしい」「とおぼしき」の形で)…と思われる。…のように見える。
② こうありたいと望まれる。希望している。
思わしい
① 好ましい状態である。よく思われる。現代では、多く否定の表現を伴って用いられる。
② そう思われるようすである。
Qualification of Usage
Some speakers try saying that 思しい is only for showing appearance and that 思わしい is for showing what is hoped for. Yet, these entries show that both meanings exist for both. So, we will learn about how they are practically used and grammatical differences that they have to differentiate them.
思しい is going to almost always be used in an attribute phrase and is most often in the form of 思しき in the written language, but it is often 思しい in more spoken language contexts. The form 思しい is not really common, but it does show up periodically in literature. 思わしい doesn't have this restriction, but it’s mainly going to be in the negative form.
Using 思しい to mean こうありたいと思われる is not used anymore and is only found in older/classical texts. It is listed in dictionaries because of its historical existence. This meaning, though, has been taken over by 思わしくない. In 国語 tests, such questions regarding this usage come up, and you would not get points for choosing 思しい. This is because current language usage does not include this definition. Also, 望まれる or the definition こうありたいと思われる may be more common overall.
As for the meaning of showing resemblance, many prescriptive people say that 思しい should be the only one to mean this. Although overall it is what most often appears rather than 思わしい, many speakers use this word to show resemblance. This is reflected in the dictionary definitions above. Thus, this is when textbook definitions and actual usage in society don't match up.
Examples
Now it’s time for example sentences to get a sense of the somewhat literary/formal/書き言葉的 style that these phrases are used in and what sorts of phrases fit well with them.
1. 犯人と思しき人物を見失う。
To lose sight of a person thought to be a criminal.
2. 一見、画家と思しき人 (Uncommon usage)
A person who in one look seems to be an artist
3. 私の町でも、英語指導助手と思しき人たちを見かける。
I also come across people in my town who appear to be assistant English teachers.
4. おととい浅草へ行ったら、団体旅行の外国人と思しき人たちが大勢歩いていた。
Two days ago when I went to Asakusa, there were a lot of people walking around who looked to be foreigners in a group vacation.
5. この町では外国人と思しき人を見かけません。
I don't come across foreign-looking individuals in this town.
6. 逃走中と思しき女性
A woman who appears to be on the run
7. 危険物と思しき物を見たら、すぐに警察に知らせてください。
If you find something that appears to be a hazardous material, immediately contact the police.
8. 最近、景気が悪くて、外国人労働者と思しき人が多くなった。
The economic has been bad recently, and the number of people who appear to be foreign workers has increased.
9. この手紙には暗号と思しき文字が書かれている。
There is lettering in this letter that appears to be coded.
10a. 線路と車輪から出ると思わしい音 ??
10b. 線路と車輪の間から出ていると思われる音
10c. 線路と車輪の擦れる音
A sound resembling what comes from between the tracks and the car wheels (of a train)
Sentence Note: Because 思わしい is used 90% with the negative, this sentence may sound strange to many Japanese speakers. 10b is a more natural version of 10a that means the same thing, but 10c is a more practical sentence which just lacks the sense of "resembling".
11. 病状が思わしくない。
The disease's condition is not satisfactory.
12. オリンピックの成績が思わしくなかった。
The Olympics' results were not satisfactory.
13. やはり手首の状態が思わしくなかったですね。
My wrist's condition was just not satisfactory, you know.
14. 近頃体調があまり思わしくない。
I haven't been so well recently.
15.
絶滅
危惧
種
と思しき動物もちらほら見かける。
I even glimpse animals that appear to be endangered species here and there.
16.
脊索
動物
と思しき化石
Fossils that resemble chordates
17. 人類の祖先と思しき生物が地球上に登場したのは2000万前といわれている。
It's said that creatures resembling the ancestors of mankind appeared on the earth 20 million years ago.
18. 人類の
祖先
と思わしき化石がアフリカの各地で次々と発見されている。
Fossils of human species thought to be those of man's ancestors are continuously being found all across Africa.
19. 寝起きと思しく乱れた髪 ? (書き言葉)
寝起きと思しき乱れた髪
Missed up hair like one has woken up from bed
Grammar Note: Using 思しい in the 連用形 as 思しく is rather rare, but it is still possible.
20. テストの結果が{〇 思わしくなかった・△/X 思しくなかった}。
My test results were not satisfactory.
21. 犯人と思しい人相の人 (やや書き言葉的)
A person with the looks of a criminal
From the 広辞苑第5版の397ページ
22. 観光客と思しい人たちが結構乗っています。 (Not conversational)
There are quite a few people riding who appear to be tourists.
The following are most certainly possible in the spoken language. After all, と思しき is still occasionally used in the spoken language. It's just not used a whole lot.
23. Aさんと思しき人物を駅で見た。
I saw a person that looked like A-san at the train station.
24. 犬の餌と思しき物体が落ちている。
Something what appears to be dog food has fallen.
25. 犯人と思しき人物を見た。
I saw a person that appeared to be a criminal.
In this lesson we will learn about the adverbial particles やら, なり, and きり. Some of them have usages that have different classifications. So, always be careful.
The Adverbial Particle やら
This particle is rather interesting. Some phrases such as どうやら shown below in sentences are used all of the time. However, when used to list things vaguely (usage 2), it is not so common and generally mainly found in books. Despite this, it is not impossible to hear someone say it every now and then because it is more emphatic than typical means of expression.
Examples
1a. 雨
が
降
るのやら
降
らないのやらよく
分
からない。
1b. 雨が降るのか降らないのかよく分からない。(もっと一般的な言い方)
I don't know whether it's going to rain or not rain.
2. どうやら
留守
のようです。
It looks like they're somehow not at home.
3. えっと、英之とやらだったかな。(ちょっと失礼な言い方)
Uh, it was a person called Hideyuki.
4. どうやら一荒れ来そうだ。
It looks like we're going to have a storm.
5. モウリさんはどうやら置いてきたものが多いらしかった。わたしは、一つか二つしか、置いてきたものはない。その一つ二つでさえ持て余しているのだから、モウリさんの疲れかたをや、だろう。
Mouri somehow seemed to have come with a lot of things. As for me, I've only came with one or two things. Since even those one or two things are hard to deal with, I guess you could say that's her way of fatigue.
From 溺レる by 川上弘美.
Particle Note: をや is a combination of the case particle を and the adverbial particle や. It is more common in things like 漢文訓読. It is often seen with いわんや (Let alone)、~において~をや. The phrase itself is a rhetorical device used to add a sense of lament. So, with the example, the author chose it to give the impression that the speaker might get fatigued thinking about his partner's things.
The Final Particle やら
Questions oneself with a sense of uncertainty. This is rarely used nowadays. The variant patterns in the first example apply for the second as well, but they are meant to show you how this has been absorbed by other speech patterns.
6a. 彼は勝
った(の)やら。 (May sound old to some)
6b. 彼は勝った(の)かな(あ) (一般的な言い方)
6c. 彼は勝ったのかしら。 (Feminine)
6d. 彼は勝ったんだろうか。 (Somewhat masculine)
I wonder if he won.
7. 行
ったやら。 (古風)
I wonder if he went.
8. 私もどれほど
安堵
しましたことやら。 (Literary)
Oh how I was relieved too.
From 光の雨 by 立松和平.
The Adverbial Particle なり
1. In "AなりBなり" meaning "either...or...". B may be a question word hinting at other options. This is normally replaced by other things. In this case, though, it's not necessarily old-fashioned.
9a. 俺
なりあんたやりが
行
かなきゃ。(Masculine)
9b. 俺かあんたが行かなきゃ。(Masculine)
Either I or you have to go.
10.
大
なり
小
なり
欠点
はある。
There is either a fault in being big or in being small.
Sentence Note: Ex. 10 is more common as it is a common expression.
11a. フランスなりどこなりへ
引
っ
越
したらいい。
11b. フランスかどこかに引っ越したらいい。(Better choice)
It would be nice to move to France or somewhere.
2. A more literary variant of ~なければ~ほど.
12. 「なんで君はある金全部を使ってしまうの」とユキヲは言うのだが、どうやって金の始末をうまくすればいいのか、私には見当もつかないのだ。少なければ少ないなりに、多ければ多いなりに、私はいつでもぴたりと使いきってしまう。体が、あり金にあわせて
伸
びたり
縮
んだりするような感じだった。
Yukio asks "why do you end up using all the money?", but I can't guess on how to dispose of the money well. Whether it be less or more, I always completely use it up. I felt as if my body stretched and contracted with [how much] money I had.
From 溺レる by 川上弘美.
3. Shows an example with the implication of the possibility of other options.
13.
Aくん「どこか海外に行きたいかな。」
Bくん「なんか西洋の空気を感じたいな。」
Aくん「じゃ、ヨーロッパへなり行きましょう。」
A: I kind of want to go overseas.
B: I'd like to feel the West and what not.
A: Let's go to somewhere like Europe.
14. 運動
するなりしてみてはどうか。
How about trying to drive or something?
なりと
This is a very interesting combination particle that has several usages. In its first usage, it sets up something as a bare minimal condition, making it essentially a humble でも. This usage, though, has become quite old-fashioned. Some exceptions to this include 何なりと which is used frequently.
15. 何なりとお申し付けを
Whatever I instruct...
16. よろしかったらお茶なりと
召
し上がってください。
If it's all right, please have something like tea.
17. どうなりと好きにせよ! (Rude , old-style command)
Do what you'd like!
Speech Note: Using something humble like this in a command results in a rather rude command.
~なりと may also be seldom seen abbreviated as ~なと. However, this is out of use in mainstream Japanese and is viewed to be dialectical.
18. 「まことに申し訳ございません。お腹が減ったでしょうから、どうぞ、これなと召し上がって下さい。いずれあとから主人がご挨拶に参ります」
"I sincerely apologize. I'm sure you are hungry, so please have this. The owner will come by to greet you sometime later."
From 翳った旋舞 by 松本清張.
In other contexts, it can show that one may choose voluntarily, but this doesn't always have to be in nice contexts. It can also be used in the pattern AなりとBなりと and function just like なり above. It may be seen as なと, which is somewhat dialectical and very old-fashioned, and なりとも.
19. 死ぬなり(と)生きるなり(と)勝手にしろ。
Whether you die or live, do whatever you want.
20. 願わくは一言なりとも知らせてほしゅうございます。(すごく古い言い方)
I wish to be informed at least one word.
The Conjunctive Particle なり
After the 連体形 of a verb, it shows that something is done as soon as something else is done. So right when someone does something, they do something next in sequence to the first action. The subject is normally third person, and the subject is the same in both clauses. The second part has a little sense of unexpected strong will.
21a. 宿題を済ませるなり、すぐに彼らはインターネットを使った。
21b. 宿題を済ませるとすぐに彼らはインターネットを使った。(More natural)
They used the Internet as soon as they finished their homework.
22. 彼は帰るなり、トイレに行った。
He went to the bathroom as soon as he got home.
23. 社長は入ってくるなり、大声で
怒鳴
りました。
As soon as the company president came in, he shouted in a big voice.
After the past tense, it shows a situation that is still in play as another action begins. There shouldn't be any movement involved by the individual.
24. 机の椅子に座ったなり、眠ってしまった。
I feel sleep in my desk chair.
The Suffix ~なり
~なり may attach to nouns to give a meaning of "like". It may attach itself to nominal phrases or the 連体形 of adjectives to show the means by which something is done like. It may also be after the 連用形 of verbs to be like the phrase ~まま (as is).
25. 彼は親
の
言
いなりになった。
He did as his parents told (and never changed).
26. 道
なりに
行
く。
To go along the road.
27. 私
なりに
努力
します。
I will put effort into it a way that suits me.
28. 体
を
弓
なりに
反
らす。
To lean one's body back in an arch-like shape.
きり is generally used to limit things. In this sense, it is just like だけ. The sense of limitation is stronger. Consider this. だけ comes from 丈. But, きり comes from 切り. With this alone, you can see how they would have slightly different nuances.
きり may also follow ~た followed by a negative expression to refer to something that has not surpassed a limit meaning "after doing...". It may also be in 丸 っきり which means "at all" in a negative potential expression.
Variant Notes:
1. きり may be seen as っきり a lot in the spoken language.
2. ぎり is an old-fashioned variant.
Etymology Note: This particle comes from the noun 切り, which means "limit" in this instance.
Examples
29. 二人
きりで
話しましょう
。
Let's talk just the two of us.
30. たった
二人
きりで
国
を
征服
した。
The two of them conquered the country.
31. 寝
たきりになる。
To become confined to continuously lying down.
32. {座
りっきりで・座ったまま(で)・座りっぱなしで}
仕事
を
続
ける
母
はいつも
肩
が
凝
っている。
My mother, who continuously sits while working, is stiff in the shoulders.
33. 中国
に
行
ったきり、彼の
行方
が分からない。
After going to China, we don't know his whereabouts.
34. まるっきり
飲
めない。
I can't drink at all.
35. もうこれ(っ)きりだよ。
Make this the last time.
36. 俺
の
手元
にあるのは1
円
これきりだぞ。(男性語)
This is my very last yen.
Literally: The last thing in my hands is just this yen.
37. 二階の彼女の―そして彼のともなる部屋は、通りに向いた窓際に、安い
塗
り
薬
の
匂
いがする
粗末
な机があるきりで、その外は灰色の
壁
と押入れの
襖
だけだった。
Near the window in her room on the second floor--the room he and she had together--facing the street, there was just a crude desk with the smell of cheap ointment, and aside from that there was only a gray wall and the closet fusuma.
From 死体紹介人 by 川端康成.
37. 「父や母は忙しいからたまにきり来ないだろうがね。よかったら君も泊りがけに来たまえ」 (ちょっと古風)
"But my mom and dad don't come but occasionally because they're busy. If it's alright, come stay over".
From 友情 by 武者小路実篤.
Grammar Notes:
1. たまにきり is an instance where this particle can be seen with an adverb, but in today's speech, the phrase would be replaced with たまにしか.
2. ~たまえ is now old-fashioned and normally used by middle aged men and older in various situations, of which none are polite to say. However, given that the book in which this sentence is from was published in 1920, the users would be of the same generation. This is a clear instance of a generational shift.
連体詞 are simply adjectival words that are stuck in the 連体形 or are modifier phrases treated as a single unit.
There are also 連体詞 that come from two defunct classes of 形容動詞: ナル形容動詞 and タル形容動詞, which still possess functional 連用形, に and と respectively. They can be viewed as adjectives with just dormant bases. In some expressions, their former past as completely functional adjectives can be more obvious. These words, though, will be discussed later on.
Below is a chart of most of the 連体詞 in Japanese followed by example sentences. This list is not exhaustive, and the defunct adjectival classes are discussed later in this lesson.
Big | 大きな | Every | あらゆる |
Funny | おかしな | Mere | ほんの |
Small | 小さな | Eternal |
長・永の |
New | 新たな | A certain | 或る |
Considerable | 大した | Pretending | 素知らぬ |
Unthinkable | とんだ | Unexpected | ひょんな |
Remaining | 残んの | This | こな |
Odd | 異な |
Reckless | 大それた |
Considerate | 心有る | Improper |
あらぬ |
Following | 明くる | Unknown | 見知らぬ |
Untiring | 飽くなき | Various | 色んな |
Last | 去んぬる | Only (thing) | ものの |
Reasonable | 無理からぬ | Useless | 言われぬ |
Past | 往にし | Strange | 奇しき |
Usage Notes:
1. All adjectival こそあど words are 連体詞. Many 連体詞 are created from classical grammatical items.
2. Many of these are uncommon and rather archaic.
3. 無理からぬ comes from the からぬ from よからぬ, the classical negative attribute form of よい, attached to 無理.
Examples
1. 色んな文書を
揃
える。
To arrange various documents.
2. 大きな
亀裂
が入っている。
There is a large crack (in the wall).
3. 無理からぬ話ですね。
It's a reasonable story, isn't it?
4.
奇
しき出来事
A strange incident
5.
明
くる日
The following day
6. ものの見事に
With great success
7.
素
知らぬ顔
A pretending face
8. あらゆる努力をして新たな計画を
練
った。
With every effort he created a new plan.
9. ひょんなことから明くる日の出来事が大きな問題になった。
From sheer chance the following day became a serious problem.
10a.
永
の別れとなった。
10b. 永遠の別れとなった。(More spoken and also more common)
It became an eternal separation.
11.
飽
くなき欲望がありますね。
You sure have a persistent desire don't you?
12.
残
んのお月を見よ。 (雅語)
Look at the remaining moon.
13. ウォルマートにはありとあらゆる品物が
並
んでいます。
Everything that you can think of is at Walmart.
14. 心ある市民の
怒
りを買うなんて
悪行
だ。
Buying the hatred of sensible citizens is an evil act.
15. 新たな
冒険
が始まる。
A new adventure begins.
16. 彼はあらゆる努力を尽くした。
He made every effort.
17. ぼんやりとあらぬ方を見やる。
To vaguely gaze at an improper way.
In this lesson, we will learn about the conjunctive particles ども and だの.
ど(も) is attached to the 已然形 of verbs to mean "even though". As for だ, use either であれど(も) or なれど(も). This will be very old-fashioned with some exceptions.
1. 行けども、行けども、砂ばかりだった。 (普段)
Even though we kept going and going, there was only sand.
2. しかし、結果は一そう悪く、待てど暮らせど何の返事も無く、自分はその
焦燥
と不安のために、かえって薬の
量
をふやしてしまった。
But, the result was even worse, and having waited and wanted and not received a response of any sort, I ended up increasing my dosage all the more out of impatience and anxiety.
From 人間失格 by 太宰治.
3. 自ら
顧
みて
縮
くんば
千万人
と
雖
も
我
往
かん。
Upon reflecting on my actions, I continue to go forward regardless of what the masses may say.
Famous, frequently quoted statement made by 吉田松陰.
4. 同じ秘書経験者といえども、菅と安倍を分けるものはまさしくそれだった。
Despite both being experienced secretaries, it was that very point of commonality which separated Suga and Abe from each other.
The Particle たりとも
The conjunctive particle たりとも is closely related etymologically to であっても. It is composed of another copula verb of older-style Japanese and the particle とも. In actual practice, its usage is restricted to set phrases.
5. なにより、自らの「同志」の一人が政権に参画したのだ。しかも彼は事務方の官房副長官という、過去一度たりとも民間人の就いたことのない重要ポストに座っている。
More than anything else, there was one person who took part in planning in the administration with the same sentiments as [the Prime Minister]. Furthermore, he was sitting in a high-level post, the administrative Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary, for which no civilian had been appointed to even once in the past.
6. 一瞬たりともおろかにはできぬ。
You can't even neglect it even for a moment.
7. 2001年、同じ場所で演説をした前首相の小泉純一郎は、街宣車から降りた途端、一歩たりとも動けなくなった。
The moment Former Prime Minister Koizumi Jun'ichiro stepped out from the propaganda vehicle onto the same spot he had given a speech in 2001, he was unable to make even a step.
The particle だの, similar to other particles such as と, や, and とか, enumerates parallel things. For the most part, its usage implies that the sentence is not completely enumerating all interrelated/parallel things, and in doing so, it usually has negative connotations. It is more correct, though, to say that rather than labeling these sentences as having a negative nuance, we can say that it is typically used for certain things that the speaker doesn't wish for and or have some sort of psychological distance.
The pattern ~だの~だの is used with two or more nouns, adjectives, or verbs, and other case particles may be found after the final instance of だの. If you can only think of one thing and wish to use ~だの, ~だのなんだの would have to be used to avoid sounding unnatural. It's also important to note that dropping any だの is ungrammatical.
Examples
8. 大学に入ると、教科書だの定期券だのを買わなければならない。
When you enter college, you have to buy textbooks, a commuter pass, and so on.
9. 十歳の息子にアイフォンだのパソコンだのとうるさくせがまれて困ってます。
I'm troubled over the fact that I'm being pestered by my 10 year old son for an iPhone, computer, and who knows what all.
10. 書類だの本だのが
散乱
している。
Things such as documents and books are scattered.
11. 目のつけどころが素晴らしいだの文章の構成が
優
れているだのと、自分でも信じられないような
褒
め言葉が並 んでいるのはわけがわからない。
These accolades lined up that even I myself can't believe like the focal points being wonderful and the sentence structure being superb are incomprehensible.
12. まずいだのきらいだのと、あんたは文句ばっかり言ってるんだよ。(Masculine; vulgar)
All you're ever complaining about is how bad it tastes and how much you hate it.
13.
辛
いだの面白くないだの、文句ばっか言うのよ!(Feminine)
All you ever complain about is stuff like it being miserable or uninteresting.
14. その国では、
神童
だの天才だのと呼ばれる才能ある子供たちは、
幼少期
から
既
にエリート教育を
授
けられ、成長するに伴いその能力を
存分
に開花させていくらしい。
In that country, children with talent that are considered prodigies or geniuses are already given elite education from early childhood, and along with growth, their potential is fully opened to their content.
From 日本教育121号 in an article by 鈴木智美.
15.
実施費
が高すぎるだの、非実用的だのといわれますが、それでも私はX議長の
政策
を支持しております。
Though it is said that the implementation costs are too high or that it is not practical, I am still in support of Chairman X's policy.
16. 大学に入ると、教科書だの定期券だの必要なものを買わなければならない。
When you enter college, you have to important things such as textbooks and a commuter pass.
Grammar Note: Notice that 教科書 and 定期券 are examples of 必要なもの. The three phrases are treated as being of the same grammatical "case/function", and given their relationship, no additional particle is needed.
17. 最近の中学生は、iPhoneだの
端末
タブレットなどを欲しがるそうだ。
Junior high students these days apparently wish for iPhones and other tablet devices.
Particle Note: The pattern ~だの~だの may change to ~だの~など under the condition that the pair of words are in the same "category". As categorization of things widely varies from person to person, there is variable opinion on grammatical acceptance of this change, which is even more apparent with more complex examples than this. However, the default pattern is always correct so long as you are using だの correctly in the first place.
The 五段 verb 堪 る means "to endure". In this lesson, we will see it used after the て form to show the speaker's utter intolerance for something.
~て堪る is followed most frequently by either か or ものか to show that one would never let something happen. The speaker is showing a strong resolution of not having something be in such a state/condition. As you can imagine, this isn't used in polite speech.
This is synonymous with 断じて~など(し)ない. 断じて ≒ 決して. ~ものか shows a strong sense of negation, and it can also be seen in more casual speech as ~もんか. It literally creates a strong negative rhetorical question.
Examples
1.
落第
などして
堪
るものか。
I would never fail!
2. 負
けてたまるか。
I would never be defeated!
3. 死
んでたまるものか。
I would never die!
4a. そんなことを断じて許せない。
4b. そんなことを許してたまるものか。
I would never allow this.
Sentence Note: 4a shows the speaker's incapability of allowing such. 4b shows a strong negative emotional reaction of allowing such, and the latter as with all of the other sentences with ~てたまる(もの)か invoke emotions such as anger. So, although the sentence with 断じて could be reworded to be even polite, that's impossible with ~てたまるものか. It's a phrase that should be limited to one's ウチ.
~てたまらない
たまらない can be translated as "to die for", "ache", "kill for", etc. You literally can't stand it, and as you see below, this is often used in a positive sense. When it's not, it should be obvious by what's being used. For instance, in the first example, the speakers really want to go, and you get the sense that they just can't stand waiting any longer. This phrase is sometimes seen in polite speech as Ex. 4 illustrates.
Examples
5. 私たち
は
行
きたくてたまらないのです。
We are eager to go.
6. あまりの
暑
さに
一休
みしたくてたまらない。
I'm dying for a break from the heat.
7. 一杯飲
みたくてたまらなかった。
I couldn't stand not having a drink.
8.
今夜
の
彼女
はたまらなく
美
しい。
She is irresistibly beautiful tonight.
9.
腹
が
立
ってたまらない。
To get furiously mad.
10.
旅行
したくてたまらないよ。
I'm aching to travel.
11. 負けて悔やしくてたまらない。
I can't stand but regret losing.
12. 負けてたまらない。
I can't stand losing.
Grammar Note: Although the subject of the last sentence could be different, both sentences show the speaker's/subject's not standing the fact of losing. The positive/negative associations of this pattern clearly fall on semantic lines of what you're using in combination with it.
This lesson is the second of five lessons that focus on nominal phrases that deserve special attention.
As a noun, きかっけに means "trigger" or "prompt". In the speech modal きっかけに it means "take the opportunity to...".
1. 日本語を勉強し始めたきかっけけは何ですか。
What was it that triggered you to begin studying Japanese?
2. この事件をきかっけに、反対の声を上げる。
To raise opposition in taking advantage of the case.
3. 事故をきかっけに、家族の
結束
を
固
める。
Take the accident to bring the family back together.
契機 means "opportunity" and is in the speech modal を契機に meaning "taking the opportunity".
4. それを契機に、新しい商売を始める。
Taking the opportunity and starting a new business.
5. 言論弾圧を契機に暴動が起こる事がバーレーンに生じています。
Violence is occurring in taking the opportunity of suppressing speech in Bahrain.
The seasons in Japan occur at the same time as the rest of the Northern Hemisphere. In this lesson we will learn about events and vocab concerning the seasons. The four seasons, 四季, are recited as "春夏秋冬" in Japanese. A season (季節) has a native and a formal term.
Spring | 春、春季 | はる、しゅんき | Fall | 秋、秋季 | あき、しゅき |
Summer | 夏、夏季 | なつ、かき | Winter | 冬、冬季 | ふゆ、とうき |
The Japanese proverb 我が世の春を謳歌(おうか)する means "enjoy the height of one's prosperity", referring to the lovely attitude towards spring. In literature spring is often emphasized with the epithets 梓弓 and 弓を張る.
Event | Date | Description |
花見 | 4月 | Every year thousands go look at cherry blossoms (桜). |
雛祭り | 3月3日 | Households are decorated with 雛人形. |
卒園式 卒業式 人事異動 |
3月 | (Kindergarten) graduations and personnel changes |
入園式 入学式 入社式 |
4月 | (Kindergarten) enrollment and new employees' ceremonies |
潅仏会(かんぶつえ) | 4月8日 | The birthday of Buddha. |
イースター | 4月 | |
母の日 | First 日曜日 of 5月 | Mother's Day |
Event | Date | Description |
天神祭り | 6~7月 | The 天満宮(てんまんぐう) and the 天神社(てんじんじゃ) shrines celebrate for a month to commemorate the death of 菅原道真(すがわらのみちざね). Signature items includes お迎(むか)え人形, どんどこ船, 龍踊り, and the ギャル御輿(みこし). |
七夕 | 7月 | 七夕(たなばた) is based on the myth that the two stars, 織姫 (Vega) and 牽牛・けんぎゅう (Altair), meet each other but once a year. |
お盆 | 7月15日 | Honors the return of the dead with dances 盆踊り and 大太鼓 drums. |
夏休み | Summer vacation. | |
花火大会 | Fireworks festivals. |
As the proverb 秋の日は釣瓶落とし says, fall sets as soon as a bucket drops into a well. There are many proverbs and words in relationship to fall. Below are some of the most important of these phrases.
高秋 | An autumn with a perfectly blue sky. |
素秋 | Equivalent to autumn being perfectly golden. |
白秋 | Equivalent to autumn being perfectly golden. |
白帝 | The god that controls autumn. |
金秋 | A golden autumn. |
三秋 | The three parts of fall. |
九秋 | The three months of fall. |
天高く馬肥ゆる秋 | Autumn with the sky clear and blue, and horses growing stout. |
一日三秋 | Waiting with each moment feeling like an eternity. |
一日千秋 | Waiting with each moment feeling like an eternity. |
物言えば唇寒し秋の風 | Silence is golden. |
女心と秋の空 | A woman's heart and autumn weather. |
秋の扇 | A woman who has lost a man's affection. |
秋の鹿は笛に寄る | People may bring about their demise for love. |
春秋に富む | To be young and have a bright future. |
Winter is a wonderful time. Winter starts on the winter solstice (冬至). 暖冬 means "warm winter" and 厳冬 "means "cold winter". People throw 雪玉 (snowballs) and make 雪だるま (snowmen). As people wait for 真冬日, the day that the temperature drops below 0, many others wait for the holidays and events like 冬の祭り.
Event | Date | Description |
クリスマス | 12月25日 | Christmas usually loses religious value. |
お歳暮 | 12月 | Giving particular gifts to those that showed you kindness in the year. |
忘年会 | 年末 | End of the year party to literally "forget" the year. |
年越し | 12月31日 | New Year's Eve. |
新年会 | 1月 | A party held for the beginning of the new year. |
節分 | The last day of winter is commemorated by bean scattering. |
Japanese national holidays used to all have names based off of Shintoism and Buddhism. But, after World War II, the terms became secularized. Holidays were established in Japan by the Public Holiday Law, 国民の祝日に関する法律. The practice of a Monday becoming a holiday because Sunday is one is called 振替休日. A holiday made when a holiday is before and after a day is called a 国民の休日.
元日 | New Year's Day | 1月1日 | The beginning of the year! |
成人の日 | Coming of Age Day | 2nd 月曜日 of 1月 | Congratulate those that are now 20. |
建国記念の日 | Foundation Day | 2月11日 | Japan's birthday |
春分の日 | Vernal Equinox Day | ~3月20日 | Admire nature. |
昭和の日 | Showa Day | 4月29日 | Emperor Showa's birthday |
憲法記念日 | Constitution Memorial Day | 5月3日 | Constitution enactment celebration |
みどりの日 | Greenery Day | 5月4日 | Be grateful for Mother Earth! |
こどもの日 | Children's Day | 5月5日 | A fabulous idea |
海の日 | Marine Day | 3rd 月曜日 of 七月 | Be grateful to the ocean. |
敬老の日 | Respect-for-the-Aged Day | 3rd 月曜日 of 九月 | Respect old people! |
秋分の日 | Autumnal Equinox Day | ~9月23日 | |
体育の日 | Health and Sports Day | 2nd 月曜日 of 十月 | Get a workout! |
文化の日 | Culture Day | 10月3日 | Marks announcement of constitution. |
天皇誕生日 | The Emperor's Birthday | 12月23日 | A good excuse for a holiday |
The are five 節句 (seasonal festivals) observed in Japan, and their dates are based off of the lunar calendar. The dates are now confused because the Western calendar is in standard use.
Number | Name of Day | Name of Event | Traditional Date | New Date |
1 | 人日 (じんじつ) |
七草の節句 | 7th day of 1st month |
January 7 |
2 | 上巳 (じょうし) | 桃の節句 | 3rd day of 3rd month |
March 3 |
3 | 端午 (たんご) |
端午の節句 | 5th day of 5th month |
May 5 |
4 | 七夕 (たなばた) |
七夕の節句 | 7th day of 7th month |
July 7 |
5 | 重陽 (ちょうよう) |
菊の節句 | 9th day of 9th month |
September 9 |
The Japanese New Year used to start at the same time as it does in China. Now, it happens on January 1st. The New Year is called 正月. January 1st is 元旦, and New Year's Eve is 大晦日.
People send 年賀状 (New Year cards), except to those that have had a lost loved one in the year. For those that have lost someone, they send out a 喪中葉書き saying not to send 年賀状. What is written in a 年賀状? You could see some of the following.
今年もよろしくお願いします |
明けましておめでとうございます |
謹賀新年 |
On December 31 the つらがね is rung 108 times to ward off evil spirits. There are a lot of things that are only eaten at New Years. 餅 is a rice paddy cake that a lot of people choke on and die each year. 餅 becomes a decoration called 鏡餅. It consists of two 餅 with a 橙 (bitter orange). Some more お節料理 (New Year dishes) include:
蒲鉾(かまぼこ) | Fish cakes |
昆布 | (Boiled) seaweed |
黒豆 | Sweetened black soybeans |
お雑煮 | Soup with 餅 and other ingredients |
七草粥(ななくさがゆ) | Seven-herb rice soup |
金平牛蒡(きんぴらごぼう) | Simmered burdock root |
Kids receiving money is called お年玉. People play games such as the card game カルタ, kite flying (凧揚(たこあ)げ), etc. This last game involves blindfolding and decorating someone with paper face parts. カルタ involves figuring out what line of poetry comes from which poem of the 百人一首, a Classical Japanese compilation.
To mark the first event of something in the new year, use 初-.
初詣 | はつもうで | Going to the shrine for the first time of the year. |
初日の出 | はつひので | First sunrise of the year. |
初夢 | はつゆめ | First dream of the year |
初顔合わせ | はつかおあわせ | First meeting of the year |
There isn't anything hard about 雨, but it is actually one of many words potentially from the Austronesian language family (which formed in Taiwan and spread throughout the Philippines, Indonesia, the Pacific and elsewhere). A growing number of Japanese scholars believe these speakers had contact with Japanese speaking populations in the ancient period. 雨 is just one of the resultant words from this probable cultural exchange.
When words evolve, they often create offshoots with related meanings. Before you start thinking this is just like Inuit having tons of words for snow, remember that English is just as guilty. First, we'll have fun figuring out where 雨 came from. Then, we'll look at all the words for kinds of rain as well as sounds for rain. In the end, you'll have enough rain words at your disposal to make rainy poetry...
The Kanji 雨 has four readings: ウ, あめ, あま-, -さめ. The first is from Chinese, so we won't need it until later. The last three, however, are clearly related to each other, but the lack of "s" in the first two poses a problem to naive natives or learners that think native words have changed little.
To those that think Japanese and Korean are related to each other, 雨 really causes problems because the Korean word for rain is /pi/. How can /pi/ possibly have any connection to something in Japanese? This, too, will be looked into.
sebu/(n)sepu: The Beginning of 雨
Early constructed Austronesian words for rain include sebu and (n)sepu.This word in Austronesian had several related words, all of which appear to have contributed to Japanese. It appears that sebu made it to Japanese as sopo and sabu. It appears that there was free variation between b and p in the ancient period, and given that similar words are being borrowed, vowels can easily shift around.
sopo → そぼ降る, どぼん, ぽとぽと, ほとばしる, ほとびる
In Poem 3883 of the 万葉集, the oldest work in Japanese, the phrase 小雨そほ降る appears. そほ is sopo. The pronunciation of o-sounds is contested. Some posit that Japanese had two o-vowels similar to Modern Korean. Sopo would eventually become sofo and then be found as sobo in the phrase そぼ降る (to drizzle), basically just as it is seen 2,000 years in the past.
The s in sopo became replaced with the t. A direct derivative of topo is どぼん, which means "plop". The the two syllables would then flip to produce poto. This poto survives in ぽとぽと, which is an onomatopoeia that describes the trickling down of heavy tears. It also survives in the verbs ほとばしる (to gush out) and ほとびる (to swell from absorbed moisture).
sabu → ざぶざぶ, さばさば, ざぶん, さめざめ, -さめ, あめ, あま-
The form sabu can be seen today in words like ざぶざぶ (onomatopoeia for gushing), さばさば (candid), さっぱり (refreshing). ざぶん (splash/plop), however, is a clear descendant of sabu. The ba in "saba" would be interchanged with ma. This should not be surprising because b and m remain interchangeable in many words to this day like つぶる・つむる (to close one's eyes).
With time, the さめざめ in さめざめ(と)泣く (crying sorrowfully) was born. Thus, we finally have -same. Drop the s and you get 雨! あま- would then be a given derivative due to the noun compounding rules established by that time.
The Korean /pi/
If we want to look for a pre-sebu word for rain in Japanese of Korean origin, we would need to find something that looks like /pi/. It turns out that this is very easy to do. 樋 is a word for gutter and water pump, and it so happens to have the readings とひ and ひ. If we take the と to be related to 戸 and focus on the ひ, we see a resemblance to /pi/. In fact, if we consider ancient pronunciation, they're the same. The readings とゆ and とよ came much later, so they pose no problem to this analysis.
Conclusions
Is anything of this fact without a shadow of a doubt? No, but that's not the main point that you should take from this. Rather, if you as a learner had gathered up these words in your vocabulary and pondered on them, you'd probably find similar connections. Finding patterns in words that are similar that you know will only help you retain what things mean and make sense of the language as a whole.
Citation Note: It would do no justice to not mention 川本崇雄, whose brilliant research led to these discoveries. His book 南から来た日本語 is a truly fascinating book that any person who is interested in the origins of Japanese words should read.
It appears that Japanese is now the new target for having too many words for the same thing: 雨. Is that really the case? Sure, there are definitely many words derived from or with 雨, but so what? When you type 雨 into an online dictionary like jisho.org, you will find tons of words with 雨. Not all are commonly used words. Some are very formal. If a rain word doesn't have 雨 in it, you probably won't think to look elsewhere to find other such words.
Sure, it rains a lot in Japan. It also rains a lot in other parts of the world. By no means should you ignore the relationship between language and geography, but the overwhelming majority of "rain" related words come from Chinese. Yes, the language does have many words for rain, but it's no more than other languages spoken in areas with similar climates.
Speech Styles Note: "Written language" simply refers to literary contexts. Some words may be used in the spoken language, but they may be more formal or typical of a news report. The descriptions will try to account for all of this, but each word will have its unique but ever changing use.
Reading Note: Remember that ウ is the Sino-Japanese reading for 雨. It is typically an indicator that a word is formal. It is used constructively to make many rain related words, some of which may be commonly used in the spoken language like 雨量(うりょう) for rainfall.
The Many 'Rain' Words
雨: Not having 雨 in a list of 'rain' words would be stupid. It's used in all sorts of settings in speaking and writing. It is the basic word for rain in Japanese. For origin, reread the start of this lesson.
小雨(こさめ): This refers to a little rain falling or rain falling that is very thin. It is very common in the spoken language, but it has the rare reading こあめ. I would advice not to use this, but its existence does bring to mind the struggle for the initial s's existence. In the written language, this word can also be read as しょうう. しょうう may also be spelled as 少雨. This can be translated as either "light/slight rain", "drizzle", or even "sprinkle".
晴一時小雨(はれいちじこさめ): This is a brief 小雨.
大雨(おおあめ): This is rain that falls in large quantities. It is the opposite of 小雨, and it is also very common in the spoken language. In the written language, it may also be read as たいう. This may be translated as "downpour" or "heavy rain".
小降り(こぶり): This word refers to rain or snow falling with weak intensity. It is appropriate to relate this to "rain letting up". This word is a commonly used word in the spoken language.
大降り(おおぶり): This is the antonym of 小降り. It refers to rain coming down with great intensity, and it can be translated as "downfall", "heavy rain", "torrential rain", but remember that it is referring to intensity rather than quantity. Though large amounts of rain come with great intensity, the angle the word takes is different than with 大雨. This word is also commonly used in the spoken language.
小粒(こつぶ)の雨: This is small drop rain. This word is very common in the spoken language.
大粒(おおつぶ)の雨: This is big drop rain. This word is very common in the spoken language.
土砂降り(どしゃぶり): Usually followed by the copula although the colloquial verb form 土砂降る does exist, this is a very natural way of saying "downpour". The rain in a 土砂降り is of 大粒 size.
豪雨(ごうう): This is a slightly more technical word for "downpour", which is why it is found in more technical words like 集中豪雨 (localized torrential flooding). This word refers to large amounts of rain coming down with great intensity. It's like a combination of 大雨 and 大降り.
雨脚・雨足(あまあし): This very common word means "passing shower". The word may uncommonly be read as あめあし.
涙雨(なみだあめ): This can be used to refer to rain akin to sad tears or it can refer to a light amount of rain falling.
弱雨(じゃくう): This is a made-up word that no one uses, and it's meant to compliment the opposite, 強雨, which does exist. In the spoken language, you would just say 弱い雨, which is used in meteorology as well.
強雨(きょうう): This would be 強い雨 in the spoken language, but this word does exist in technical situations. The wind related term 強風 is used in the spoken language whereas 強雨, which is not that congruent, but what do you expect?
微雨(びう): This is a literary word for 細か{な・い}雨. This is light, drizzly rain.
細雨(さいう): This is a literary word for 細か{な・い}雨. Though also referring to a drizzle, it may also refer to misty rain. However, this is expressed in the spoken language as 霧雨.
(小)糠雨((こ)ぬかあめ): This is rain where the rain drops are incredibly thin and misty. This is acceptable in the spoken language, though it isn't something that you would casually drop in a conversation. 小- is used as an intensifier.
霧雨(きりさめ): This is the spoken language word for "misty rain".
煙雨(えんう): This is a literary word that comes from a comparison of smoke to misty rain.
俄雨(にわかあめ): A combination of にわか (sudden/abrupt) and 雨, 俄雨 refers to a rain that suddenly pours and then just ends. This is somewhat specific, but it doesn't prevent it from being used in the spoken language.
夕立(ゆうだち): This is a shower that lasts into the evening that starts in the latter part of the afternoon in the summer. The rain comes down hard and suddenly, and lightning typically accompanies it.
急雨(きゅうう): This is a rare word for 俄雨. 急な雨 would be used in the spoken language to replace this.
白雨(はくう): This is a very literary term for the same thing as 俄雨.
驟雨(しゅうう): This is an insanely rare, literary word for the same thing as 俄雨.
長雨(ながあめ): This is a commonly spoken word meaning "long rain" in the sense that rain continues on for several days.
霖(ながめ): Coming from a contraction of ながあめ, this word can often be found in things like poetry.
霖雨(りんう): This is rather literary term that means the same thing as 長雨.
陰霖(いんりん): This is a very rare word for 長雨.
陰雨(いんう): This is a literary word referring to gloomy rain. This can be expressed in the spoken language with 陰気な雨.
淫雨(いんう): This is a literary word that refers to long lasting rains, but bad consequences are implied to crops.
時雨(しぐれ): This is a somewhat poetic word that refers to the scattered rains that start in late autumn and end in early winter. It is seen in a lot of compound expressions such as 時雨空, 秋時雨, 初時雨, 村時雨, etc. It even has the verb form 時雨れる, although 時雨が降る is far more common.
梅雨(つゆ・ばいう): The first reading is native and the second reading is Sino-Japanese, but both are extremely common words in both the written and spoken languages. Though the latter may be slightly less frequent, both words refer to the rainy season which lasts in Japan from June to July. ばいう may also be rarely spelled as 黴雨. ばいう does get used more in technical phrases such as 梅雨前線 (rainy season front). Some years, the rainy season may be dry, 空梅雨(からつゆ). Entering the rainy season is called 梅雨入り・入梅(つゆいり). A dry spell in the rainy season is called a 梅雨晴れ(つゆばれ). The end of the season is called the 梅雨明け(つゆあけ).
雨季(うき): This is another commonly used word for "rainy season", but the main difference is that this is not Japan-specific. When stressing on a particular part of the year, this word may alternatively be spelled as 雨期.
五月雨(さみだれ): Also rarely read as さつきあめ, this somewhat common word refers to continuous long rains in the fifth lunar month. This is the same as 梅雨, but the basis of meaning is slightly different.
春雨(はるさめ): In relation to rain, this word refers to the thin rain that quietly falls in spring. This word is common in the spoken language, but it can also be read as しゅんう in the written language. Aside from rain, it can also mean "thin bean starch noodles". This is clearly analogous to the shape of "spring rains".
春霖(しゅんりん): This is a rare literary word for 春雨.
菜種梅雨(なたねづゆ): This is a rare, literary, yet native word for 春霖.
夏雨(かう): This is very rare and practically only found in the technical phrase 温暖夏雨気候 (temperate rainy summer climate). なつさめ is a viable phrase, but it is not particular common, and not all speakers will agree that it is a word.
秋雨(あきさめ): Read as あきさめ in the spoken language and as しゅうう in the written language, this word refers to autumn rain. This especially refers to long autumnal rains, and it is not appropriate to refer to 俄雨 in this season. The word itself in the spoken language is common, especially in autumn...
秋霖(しゅうりん): This is a rare literary word for 秋雨.
冬雨(ふゆさめ): This is not a word to many speakers, but it does sometimes gets used. People assume that if you can say はるさめ and あきさめ, then there shouldn't be any problem with ふゆさめ. As it is a contested word, use something else for school assignments.
春の雨; 夏の雨; 秋の雨: 冬の雨: Aside from just specific terms like above, you could just use these phrases to just mention rain in a certain season.
氷雨(ひさめ): This means "freezing rain", referring to really cold rain, but t can also mean "hail". Hail, though, is typically the next two words.
雹(ひょう): Equivalent to "hail(stone)", 雹 fall down from cumulonimbus clouds in a thunderstorm. The diameter of one is at least five millimeters.
霰(あられ): These is regular, small-sized hail as the result of mist crystallizing in the air. This is far more common in the spoken language than 雹. Both words are typically spelled in ひらがな.
霙(みぞれ): This word means "sleet" and is a rather common word, although it is typically spelled in ひらがな.
雨混(ま)じりの雪: Rain-mixed snow. This phrase and the next one are both common expressions.
雪混じりの雨: Snow-mixed rain. The major precipitation is opposite of the previous expression.
雨後雪(あめのちゆき): Often seen in weather reports, this means "snow after rain”.
雨下(うか): A rare written language word for raining, which is typically 雨が降る in the spoken language.
風雨(ふうう): Literally "wind and rain", this is actually a rather common word. However, it's a tad bit too formal to be seen in colloquial conversations.
暴風雨(ぼうふうう): This is a technical yet still frequently used word for "storm".
雨模様(あまもよう): Also read as あめもよう, this is the most common way to refer to "signs of rain".
雨催い(あまもよい): This is an old-fashioned way of saying the previous thing, and it can be alternatively read as あめもよい.
雨気(うき): This is the Sino-Japanese word for "signs of rain", and as you can guess, it's very formal and basically not used. This can also be read as あまけ, which is more common.
雨氷(うひょう): This is rain that is colder than 0℃, and it quickly hardens when it hits the surface of something. Though translated as "freezing rain", it is quite technical and practical only used in meteorological formats.
横降り(よこぶり): This word is a commonly spoken word meaning "driving rain". However, it can also refer to snow. The point is that it refers to rain being made to fall slanted due to gale winds.
吹き降り(ふきぶり): This word is a commonly spoken word that refers to strong wind accompanied with heavy rain, thus making it synonymous with 横降り. In this case, however, the emphasis is on the wind itself, not the direction of the rain.
天泣(てんきゅう): Though more natural to just say 雲がないのに雨が降る, this is not as esoteric as some of these other words.
晴後雨(はれのちあめ): Often seen during news weather reports, this means "rain after being clear".
雷雨(らいう): This word means "thunderstorm" and is an extremely common word.
降雨(こうう): This is "precipitation" and is just as formal as the English word. The spoken word for this is 雨降り.
人工(降)雨(じんこう(こう)う): Artificial precipitation.
放射能雨(ほうしゃのうう): More naturally read as ほうしゃのうあめ, this word means "radioactive rain". Highly polluted/radioactive rain can also be called 黒い雨, which is used in the spoken language.
酸性雨(さんせいう): ”Acid rain".
流星雨(りゅうせいう): ”Meteor shower".
雨露(うろ): This word means "rain and dew", but it is usually reading as あめつゆ for the spoken language, which can also be more naturally worded as 雨と露.
涼雨(りょうう): 涼しい雨 in the spoken language, this word refers to lovely rain in the summer that cools everything down.
冷雨(れいう): This word means "cold rain", but it is a formal word and would be replaced with 冷たい雨 in the spoken language.
寒雨(かんう): This is a literary word for "wintry rain". This could also be expressed as 寒々とした雨, but this is still not totally colloquial.
夜雨(やう): If used in the spoken language it would be 夜の雨, and to be more poetic, you could read 夜雨 as よさめ and 夜の雨 as よのあめ. These words simply mean "night rain". A "rainy night" would be 雨夜(あまよ).
緑雨(りょくう): This word refers to rain that falls in the season when new greens grow. However, this is relative to what part of the world you live in, and although you would assume this would be used for around April and May, the word is just uncommon and literary.
甘雨(かんう): Homophonous yet even rarer than 寒雨, this word refers to rain that graciously falls to replenish greens.
慈雨・滋雨(じう): This is a slightly more common word for the same thing as 甘雨, though it would be more appropriate in the spoken language to say something like 草木を育てる雨. Notice how it is often more common to use the definition of a more technical word in the spoken language. This phrase is actually short for 干天慈雨.
喜雨(きう): Joyful, pleasant rain that can help with the crops. This is just as rare and literary as the other words for the same thing.
恵雨(けいう): This word also refers to blessed rain for crops, but it's not used in the spoken language either. This would naturally be expressed as 恵みの雨.
十雨(じゅうう): This means "refreshing rain once in ten days", but this is never used. The similar four character idiom 十風五雨・五風十雨 (halcyon weather) is more common. Just saying 十日ごとに雨が降る will be fine.
凍雨(とうう): This somewhat technical word may either refer to rain as cold as ice or ice pellets. However, both concepts in the spoken language would most likely be expressed as 凍るほど冷たい雨・氷のように冷たい雨 and 氷の粒 respectively.
晴雨(せいう): This is a technical word for clear and rainy weather.
弾雨(だんう): This is a shower of bullets. It is a literary word, so you will more than likely hear the definition used in the spoken language instead. This is a contraction of 弾丸飛雨(だんがんひう).
法雨(ほうう): ”Shower of Dharma", also known as のりのあめ. This is not a common word.
快雨(かいう): This is a rare word for rain that makes oneself feel refreshed.
穀雨(こくう): This literally means "grain rain", and it is a solar term for ~April 20th.
祈雨(きう): This is a very rare word for praying for rain. 雨乞い is used in the spoken language.
止雨(しう): This is a very rare word for praying for rain to stop.
樹雨(きさめ): This is a rather easy word describing raindrops that fall of the leaves and branches of trees. This is not, though, a common word.
私雨(わたくしあめ): An obscure and hardly used term used to refer to rain that mainly hits a certain area.
遣(や)らずの雨: This is rain that seems to be preventing you or someone from leaving something. This is an interesting phrase, but it isn't really common.
黒風白雨(こくふうはくう): This is an uncommon four character idiom that means "sudden rain shower in a dust storm".
篠突く雨(しのつくあめ): This is a rather literary word referring to heavy rain that looks as if it is bamboo bound together and dropped. Something like ざあざあ降る would replace it in the spoken language.
Common Rain Associated Words
The table below lists many rain associated words that you can add to your vocabulary. Most of these words are quite practical and can be used in everyday language.
雨戸 | あまど | Sliding storm shutter | 雨具 | あまぐ | Rain gear | 雨着 | あまぎ | Raincoat |
雨天 | うてん | Rainy weather | 雨滴 | うてき | Raindrop | 雫・滴 | しずく | Raindrop |
雨林 | うりん | Rain forest | 雨雲 | あまぐも | Rain cloud | 雨水 | あまみず | Rainwater |
雨水 | うすい | Rain water | 雨間 | あまあい | Break in rain | 雨音 | あまおと | Sound of rain |
雨傘 | あまがさ | Umbrella | 雨靴 | あまぐつ | Overshoes | 雨空 | あまぞら | Rainy sky |
雨垂れ | あまだれ | Raindrop | 雨粒 | あまつぶ | Raindrop | 雨樋 | あまどい | Rain gutter |
雨漏り | あまもり | Rain leak | 雨風 | あめかぜ | Rain & wind | 雨上り | あめあがり | Rain letup |
雨続き | あめつづき | Rain continuation | 雨合羽 | あまがっぱ | Rain poncho | 雨後 | うご | After rain |
Rain Onomatopoeia
What about onomatopoeia for rain? Along with the ones you got from earlier, plenty exist to describe the exact sound of rain/water/tears falling. This list isn't exhaustive, but after all of these rain words, you probably can't stand any more.
ぽつぽつ | Rain falling down just a little | ぼつぼつ | Same as ぽつぽつ |
しとしと | Rain quietly falling | ざあざあ | Rain pouring |
ざんざん | The same as ざあざあ | ぽとぽと | Rain falling in big drops |
しょぼしょぼ | Drizzling | ぐずぐず | Drizzling |
ぱらぱら | For rain to spatter | さっと | Suddenly |
Burial customs in Japan are very serious and complex. In this lesson, you will learn a lot about what is appropriate and what is not.
When a person dies, 香典 is usually given as a funeral gift of money to the family at the vigil or funeral. This is given in an envelope called a 熨斗袋 . This is a general term for envelopes for giving money, so you'll see more specific terms later in this section. This envelope looks different depending on religion, so you will need to be careful and ask for what is appropriate. For instance, if there is a picture of a lotus on it, it should only be used for those who follow Buddhism. What is put in the inscription is not an easy question, and it depends heavily on the religious beliefs of the deceased. It also doesn't help that there isn't unilateral decision on what to do.
What is 香典?
In 香典, there is this meaning of 持ちつ持たれつ・ 相互扶助 (give-and-take). The amount of money you give is based on your relation to the person. The most common amounts are 5000円, 3000円, and 10,000円, but the latter may be avoided as it is deemed unlucky by many to give an amount with an initial even digit. If you are unable to give much money, you should write 菊一輪 . The money should also be new bills found at a bank or 郵便局. What to put on the top of the paper envelope (表書き) is no easy matter.
Grammar Note: This つ is an old particle equivalent to たり.
The 中包み
In the inside, the front side of the card (中包み) should have the amount to be given in old-style characters (大字). So, 壱, 弐, 参, 四, 五・伍, 六, 七, 八, 九, 拾, 百, 千, and 萬 should be used instead. 円 should be spelled as 圓. The name and address of the individual should be written on the back side. This is to keep the sadness of the death to be underneath.
御香典
The first thing to note is that ご・お should be written in 御 to show more respect. 御香典 may be safe if you don't know the religion. It may be read as either おこうでん or ごこうでん, but the first is the most common, and the decision may also deal with specific sect. Regardless of reading, this is not appropriate for Shinto followers. So, 御霊前 is felt by many others as the most appropriate heading.
For Shinto Followers
If the person is a Shinto believer, 御神前 or 御玉串料 may be used. 御榊料 , 御神饌料 , and 御供物料 may also be acceptable. 初穂料 is written in an envelope addressed to the Shinto shrine. 幣料 may be used on the 金包み with the money for the お 祓 い (purification) costs.
For Christians
For Christians, 御花料 or 御 ミサ料・御弥撒料 (for Catholics) may be used. Using 漢字, of course, makes things more formal. You may also see 御花環料 . For design-less 不祝儀袋 , which equates to 熨斗袋 in the sense that it is an envelope for a misfortunate occasion, ご霊前 may be acceptable.
For Buddhists
御霊前 can be possibly used even if a person is Buddhist, Shinto follower, or Christian. However, if the person is of the 浄土真宗 sect, you should use 御仏前 instead. If you can't find this out, 御霊前 is acceptable. So, it can be used if you don't know the religious of the person. You can also use this for 御供物 (flowers).
御霊前・御香典 can be used on the vigil or funeral, but 御仏前 ・御佛前 should be used after the Buddhist service on the 49th day the person has died. 御香料 ・ 御香華料 is also acceptable for this occasion. However, as mentioned earlier, 御仏前・御佛前 is acceptable for all the above in the 浄土真宗 Buddhism. 佛 is the old form of 仏, which makes it more formal.
Contacting the Family
If the person is a loved one of your family or a close family, you should contact the family as soon as you can. If it is an acquaintance of some sort, you should wait until after the vigil to give your condolences. When you do receive contact, make sure to not only give your condolences but also find out the time and place of the vigil and funeral as well as the person's religion. If you already gave your 香典 at the vigil, you should only write your name in the register at the funeral.
弔電
If you unable to attend either or if it is business related, you should send a 弔電 , This is literally a "condolence telegram", but there ways of doing this through phone and fax. The 表書き for this should be 御弔料 along with the name of the company/organization. However, you should consult others for this as well as practices vary in acceptability. In it, you should have 故 〇〇〇〇様ご遺族様 in it. The prefix 故 means “late” as in “the late Mr. Smith”. 遺族 means “the family of the deceased”. 様 is attached to show respect.
Not Knowing the Person
It is also appropriate to 御悔 if the person is not someone you are close or related to. However, using one of the more appropriate, religious focused headings is more respectful.
Thanks to the お寺・僧侶
There are also phrases to show thanks to the temple/monks.
御布施 : Used to give thanks to the temple and or monks for a Buddhist funeral.
御経料: This is the same as 御布施.
読経御礼 : It is used in the same sense as 御経料. おれい may be used a lot instead, but おんれい is more formal. Don’t pronounce 読経 as どっきょう.
戒名料 : This is used for showing thanks for the posthumous Buddhist name being given to the deceased.
御回向料 : This is used for showing thanks for reading out a sutra at the funeral.
御車料 : This is used for travel expenses.
御膳料
: Used for food costs. It may also be 御食事料.
御足衣料
: This may also be used for travel expenses.
配り物
If you were to be in the position of presenting a gift for a funeral offering, there are a few phrases for this.
志 : Used in Buddhist and Shinto styles. This is used as a return gift for 香典 or 法要 (Buddhist service).
粗供養 : Present from a 法要.
Final Note: As you can see, funeral arrangements in Japanese culture is very complex. However, this also shows us just how complex お~ and ご~ phrases may be. As this section illustrates, you may even see おん~.
君が代, which is usually translated as "His Majesty's Reign", is the 国歌 (national anthem) of the great nation of Japan. The song first started out as a 和歌 from the Heian Period (平安時代). After the 明治維新 (Meiji Restoration) in 1880, it was turned into a song and then eventually treated as the national anthem, but this only became official in 1999 despite most Japanese people already thinking it was. The anthem happens to be the shortest in the world with only 32 characters.
Lyrics:
君が代は
千代に八代に
さざれ石の
巌となりて
苔の生すまで
かな Version:
きみがよは
ちよにはちよに
さざれいしの
いわおとなりて
こけのむすまで
Standard English Translation:
May your reign
Continue for a thousand, eight thousand generations,
Until the pebbles
Grow into boulders
Lush with moss
The song originated from a 短歌 in the 古今和歌集. The song describes how the Imperial Household will continue forever. One main difference between the current version and the original was that 君が代 was わが君, reflecting how it used to be a song sung on formal occasions to wish for a long life. Many disapprove of the strong implications of revering the Emperor as figure of worship. Others view it as a piece of history and that the politics is a separate matter.
Given that there is quite a bit of old grammar in such a small song, it's important to note those differences. First, let's look at the lyrics again.
君が代は
千代に八代に
さざれ石の
巌となりて
苔の生すまで
The first issue is 君. This word at the time the song was written could refer to someone like the Emperor, but it could also be used to anyone of high status. In fact, Genji, the main character in the famous story 源氏物語, is often referred as 光の君 in it.
The case particles が and の used to be completely interchangeable in Classical Japanese. This is explains essentially most of the differences. Another is that the て形 contractions are not seen at this time, and if they were, it would not have been indicative of literary language just yet. Even to this day when things are purposely made classical, such contractions are almost always completely avoided.
This is often called the Japanese alphabet song, despite that かな are syllabaries. The いろは first appeared in 万葉仮名 but brilliantly uses each basic sound only once. The song was attributed to 空海, who founded the 真言 sect of Buddhism. However, due to a rather interesting hidden message in the poem, it's likely that it was actually written after his death.
万葉仮名 Version
いろはにほへと
ちりぬるを
わかよたれそ
つねならむ
うゐのおくやま
けふこえて
あさきゆめみし
ゑひもせす
As you can see, there is no marking of voiced sounds. The pronunciation of words has also changed just as much as the grammar. ん was not standard as a specific character for N' until Modern times, so it shouldn't be expected to be in here. It also has the obsolete ゐ and ゑ as these sounds were used in Japanese at the time. However, once the current 五十音 ordering, which is based off the Sanskrit ordering of sounds, was adopted in the Meiji Restoration, this became out of use for most situations to list the sounds.
いろはにほへど = 色は匂えど Although the scent lingers
ちりぬるを = 散りぬるを It (the flowers) will eventually blossom
わかよたれそ = 我が世誰ぞ Who in our world
常ならむ = 常ならむ Never changes?
うゐのおくやま = 有為の奥山 The deep mountains of vanity
けふこえて = 今日超えて Today we cross
あさきゆめみし = 浅き夢見じ And we shall not see superficial dreams
ゑひもせす = 酔ひもせず Nor be drunk
The particle ど follows the 已然形 and has the same function as けれど, which is a derivative of it with an auxiliary. -ぬる is the 連体形 of the intransitive perfective auxiliary verb -ぬ, which is no longer used in Modern Japanese and followed the 連用形 of verbs.
The ぞ is a 係助詞 here, which is particle class with rather difficult usage. Essentially, it would be at the end of the sentence in Modern Japanese, ignoring the fact that the particle in question is only archaically used in Modern Japanese to be used in conjunction with the old volitional ending -む to make a rhetorical question.
けふ means "today" and it used to be pronounced as /kepu/. This would eventually become /keu/, which eventually become a diphthong and turn into /kyo:/, which it is today in Standard Modern Japanese. The word is a combination of け, the original word for today and ふ, which is the 終止形 of the Classical form of the verb 経る (to pass time).
~じ is a negative auxiliary that means ~ないだろう. Thus, it naturally follows the 未然形. Lastly, もせず = もしないで.
五十音順
For many things in life, though, the 五十音順 is used instead. But, have you ever wondered how you would arrange 濁音 and 拗音? If you had たかた and たかだ, you would list them in that order, but if you had かわさきじろう (川崎次郎) and かわざきいちろう (河崎一郎), you would start with 河崎一郎. This is because you have to think of the order of the 五十音. い comes before し・じ. You look at 濁音 last. As for 拗音, there is no single convention, but non-拗音 are usually first.
This lesson introduces more difficult/less common phrases for showing similarity.
You may also seldom see 如 . ごと is 如くwhen used adverbially, 如き when used adjectivally in the 連体形, and 如し when used adjectivally in the 終止形. ごと is largely replaced by 如くだ. This is old-fashioned and often used for poetic reasons or in set expressions.
1. 月の如く
Like the moon
2. 天使の如く
Like an angel
3. 人生はあたかも春の夜の夢の如しということではないと思うんだ。
I don't think that human life is as if it was like a dream of a spring night.
4. 我々ごときが坐っていてアンケートと本で調べた(だけでもないが)点に致命的弱味がある。
There is a fatal weak point in the like of us who sat and researched questionnaires and books (though that isn't all we did).
From 大分方言 by 高田一彦.
Grammar Note: Notice how ごとき is used. It is not connected to 我々 with の, and it is treated as a nominal phrase. The reason for this is that in older forms of Japanese, the 連体形 of adjectives could take on case particles such as が to be used as nominal phrases. The result here is the very formal, written expression for "the like of us".
5. 売れ
行
き
甚
だ
振
るわざるがごとし。(Classical)
It appears that sales are really not flourishing.
Word Notes: 売れ行き comes from the combination of 売れる (to be sold) and 行く.
~ざるがごとし is Classical Japanese for ~ないようだ.
This is an infrequently used word that means "just like". It is rather literary and is not really used in the spoken language. Even its Kanji spelling is not particularly known. However, it is a topic on the JLPT NI, so it is something that you need to take note of.
When さながら attaches to a noun, it shows that something is just as something else. In this sense, it is similar to 同然. In other contexts, it is an adverb meaning まるで. This, again, would not be something used in 話し言葉.
6. 本当の戦争さながら
Just as a real war
7. あの人の姿はさながら死骸のようだった。
That person's figure was just like that of a dead body.
8. 王
宛
らの
大歓迎
A royal welcome
しかず, frequently spelled as 如かず, comes from an old verb no longer used anymore to show that something is the same thing as and or does not exceed a certain point. This, though, is not in a negative sense but in a good meaning. A similar phrase is ~には及ばない. Though 如かず is still used, it's normally used in set phrases.
9. 百聞は一見に如かず。
Seeing is believing.
10. 尽く書を信ずれば則ち書なきに如かず。
If you believe what is in a book fully without hesitation, it is as if there is no book at all.
Set Phrase Note: This is a proverb from Mencius lecturing people that if they believed everything in the Book of History, 書経, without having any critical judgment on it, it would be best if the book didn't exist at all.
We have already learned well before how to make the date in Japanese. Unlike in American English, in Japanese, the data begins with the year, which is then followed by the month and then the day of the month. You can then go further and add the name of the day of the week after this in various ways.
What we have not addressed so far is the fact that Japanese has another way of representing the date. We are used to using the Western Calendar, but the Japanese have their own calendar system. Also, Japan used to follow the lunar calendar. So, this lesson will address both of these things.
For review, look at the following dates written in various fashions.
1. 2014年3月11日
March 11, 2014
2. 2200年10月13日
October 13, 2200
3. 1745年4月9日
April 9, 1745
4. 一九五四年一一月二五日
November 25, 1954
5. 13年4月3日発売予定!
Release 4/3/13!
Abbreviation Note: Just as in English, the year may be abbreviated likewise. As such, 95年 almost always means 1995. Also, as we are in the 21st century, 13年 = 2013年.
6. 四百五拾六年壱拾弐月参日
December 3rd, 456
Spelling Note: This last example uses 大字 numeral variants, which are often used in official documents as well as on money. This convention is closer to how numbers are used in Chinese. Although December would still be read off as じゅうにがつ, it is spelled as if it were read as いちじゅうにがつ. You will hardly ever encounter this convention, but it is important to know that it exists.
Orthography Note: Japanese numerals are written in various fonts in printed material. You will notice that people will have their own preferences. Some may use English fonts like in Ex. 1 or some will use a Japanese font as in Ex. 2-5.
There are two calendar systems in use today in Japan. The most common is the Western Calendar ( 西暦 ) but the traditional calendar based on the era ( 年号 ) of a political time period ( 改元 ) is used heavily in formal/official situations. Each period in the traditional calendar starts with 元年 and then continues as you would expect. The current era is the 平成時代 , which will end presumably when the current sitting emperor passes away.
7.
昭和
47年
1972
8. 平成元年
1989
Era names extend all the way to the beginning of Imperial reign in Japan, beginning with 神武天皇. For the majority of these first eras, the name of that era matches the traditional name of the emperor in question, which is usually a posthumous name coined with Buddhist influence.
Later on, a tradition of coining a new term to commemorate an era takes shape. This practice continues to this day. Many speakers don't know era names older than the 明治時代, which began in 1868. Although speakers are exposed to many era names throughout the course of their education, knowledge about them is rather scattered. As such, it is not imperative of you to remember any of them but perhaps the last four.
The chart below, although quite long and extensive, shows all era names from the beginning (660 B.C.) to the present. Again, you don't have to memorize its contents. Use this as a reference whenever you come across a date you can't comprehend.
Chart Note: Although the chart indicates what year each era begins, each era technically begins once the reign is switched to said emperor of that era. As such, you will need to do research regarding the month and day the transition would have taken place to create an accurate date for the years in which a new era begins.
元号 | 読み | 元年(西暦) | 元号 | 読み | 元年(西暦) |
神武天皇 | じんむてんのう | 前600年 | 綏靖天皇 | すいぜいてんのう | 前581年 |
安寧天皇 | あんねいてんのう | 前548年 | 懿徳天皇 | いとくてんのう | 前510年 |
孝昭天皇 | こうしょうてんのう | 前475年 | 考安天皇 | こうあんてんのう | 前392年 |
孝霊天皇 | こうれいてんのう | 前290年 | 孝元天皇 | こうげんてんのう | 前214年 |
開化天皇 | かいかてんのう | 前157年 | 崇神天皇 | すじんてんのう | 前97年 |
垂仁天皇 | すいにんてんのう | 前29年 | 景行天皇 | けいこうてんのう | 71年 |
成務天皇 | せいむてんのう | 131年 | 仲哀天皇 | ちゅうあいてんのう | 192年 |
神功皇后 | じんぐうこうごう | 201年 | 応神天皇 | おうじんてんのう | 270年 |
仁徳天皇 | にんとくてんのう | 313年 | 履中天皇 | りちゅうてんのう | 400年 |
反正天皇 | はんぜいてんのう | 406年 | 允恭天皇 | いんぎょうてんのう | 412年 |
安康天皇 | あんこうてんのう | 454年 | 雄略天皇 | ゆうりゃくてんのう | 457年 |
静寧天皇 | せいねいてんのう | 480年 | 顕宗天皇 | けんぞうてんのう | 485年 |
仁賢天皇 | にんけんてんのう | 488年 | 武烈天皇 | ぶれつてんのう | 499年 |
継体天皇 | けいたいてんのう | 507年 | 安閑天皇 | あんかんてんのう | 534年 |
宣化天皇 | せんかてんのう | 536年 | 欽明天皇 | きんめいてんのう | 540年 |
敏達天皇 | びだつてんのう | 572年 | 用明天皇 | てんようてんのう | 586年 |
崇峻天皇 | すしゅんてんのう | 588年 | 推古天皇 | すいこてんのう | 593年 |
舒明天皇 |
じょめいてんのう | 629年 | 皇極天皇 | こうぎょくてんのう | 642年 |
大化 | たいか | 645年 | 白雉 | はくち | 650年 |
斉明天皇 | さいめいてんのう | 655年 | 天智天皇 | てんじてんのう | 662年 |
天武天皇 | てんむてんのう | 672年 | 朱鳥 | しゅちょう | 686年 |
持統天皇 | じとうてんのう | 687年 | 文武天皇 | もんむてんのう | 697年 |
大宝 | たいほう | 701年 | 慶雲 | けいうん | 704年 |
和銅 | わどう | 708年 | 霊亀 | れいき | 715年 |
養老 | ようろう | 717年 | 神亀 | じんき | 724年 |
天平 | てんぴょう | 729年 | 天平感宝 | てんぴょうかんぽう | 749年 |
天平勝宝 | てんぴょうしょうほう | 749年 | 天平宝字 |
てんぴょうほうじ | 757年 |
天平神護 | てんぴょうじんご | 765年 | 神護景雲 | じんごけいうん | 767年 |
宝亀 | ほうき | 770年 | 天応 | てんおう | 781年 |
建暦 | けんりゃく | 782年 | 大同 | たいどう | 806年 |
弘仁 | こうにん | 810年 | 天長 | てんちょう | 824年 |
承和 | じょうわ | 834年 | 嘉祥 | かしょう | 848年 |
仁寿 | にんじゅ | 851年 | 斉衡 | さいこう | 854年 |
天安 | てんあん | 857年 | 貞観 | じょうかん | 859年 |
元慶 | がんぎょう | 877年 | 仁和 | にんな | 885年 |
寛平 | かんぴょう | 889年 | 昌泰 | しょうたい | 898年 |
延喜 | えんぎ | 901年 | 延長 | えんちょう | 923年 |
承平 | じょうへい | 931年 | 天慶 | てんぎょう | 938年 |
天暦 | てんりゃく | 947年 | 天徳 | てんとく | 957年 |
応和 | おうわ | 961年 | 康保 | こうほう | 964年 |
安和 | あんな | 968年 | 天禄 | てんろく | 970年 |
天延 | てんえん | 973年 | 貞元 | じょうげん | 976年 |
天元 | てんげん | 978年 | 永観 | えいかん | 983年 |
寛和 | かんな | 985年 | 永延 | えいえん | 987年 |
永祚 | えいそ | 989年 | 正暦 | しょうりゃく | 990年 |
長徳 | ちょうとく | 995年 | 長保 | ちょうほう | 999年 |
寛弘 | かんこう | 1004年 | 長和 | ちょうわ | 1012年 |
寛仁 | かんにん |
1017年 |
治安 |
じあん |
1021年 |
万寿 |
まんじゅ | 1024年 | 長元 | ちょうげん | 1028年 |
長暦 | ちょうりゃく | 1037年 | 長久 | ちょうきゅう | 1040年 |
寛徳 | かんとく | 1044年 | 永承 | えいしょう | 1046年 |
天喜 | てんき | 1053年 | 康平 | こうへい | 1058年 |
治暦 | じりゃく | 1065年 | 延久 | えんきゅう | 1069年 |
承保 | じょうほう | 1074年 | 永保 | えいほ | 1077年 |
応徳 | おうとく | 1081年 | 寛治 | かんじ | 1084年 |
嘉保 | かほう | 1087年 | 永長 | えいちょう | 1094年 |
承徳 | じょうとく | 1096年 | 康和 | こうわ | 1097年 |
長治 | ちょうじ | 1099年 | 嘉承 | かしょう | 1104年 |
天仁 | てんにん | 1106年 | 天永 | てんえい | 1108年 |
永久 | えいきゅう | 1110年 | 元永 | げんえい | 1113年 |
保安 | ほうあん | 1118年 | 天治 | てんじ | 1120年 |
大治 | だいじ | 1124年 | 天承 | てんじょう | 1126年 |
長承 | ちょうじょう | 1131年 | 保延 | ほうえん | 1132年 |
永治 | えいじ | 1135年 | 康治 | こうじ | 1141年 |
天養 | てんよう | 1142年 | 久安 | きゅうあん | 1144年 |
仁平 | にんぺい | 1145年 | 久寿 | きゅうじゅ | 1151年 |
保元 | ほうげん | 1154年 | 平治 | へいじ | 1156年 |
永暦 | えいりゃく | 1160年 | 応保 | おうほ | 1161年 |
長寛 | ちょうかん | 1163年 | 永万 | えいまん | 1165年 |
仁安 |
になん |
1166年 |
嘉応 |
かおう |
1169年 |
承安 |
しょうあん | 1171年 | 安元 | あんげん | 1175年 |
治承 | じしょう | 1177年 | 養和 | ようわ | 1181年 |
寿永 | じゅえい | 1182年 | 元暦 | げんりゃく | 1184年 |
文治 | ぶんじ | 1185年 | 建久 | けんきゅう | 1190年 |
正治 | しょうじ | 1199年 | 建仁 | けんにん | 1201年 |
元久 | げんきゅう | 1204年 | 建永 | けんえい | 1206年 |
承元 | じょうげん | 1207年 | 建暦 | けんりゃく | 1211年 |
建保 | けんぽう | 1213年 | 承久 | しょうきゅう | 1219年 |
貞応 | じょうおう | 1222年 | 元仁 | げんにん | 1224年 |
嘉禄 | かろく | 1225年 | 安貞 | あんてい | 1227年 |
寛喜 | かんき | 1229年 | 貞永 | じょうえい | 1232年 |
天福 | てんぷく | 1233年 | 文暦 | ぶんりゃく | 1234年 |
嘉禎 | かてい | 1235年 | 暦仁 | りゃくにん | 1238年 |
延応 | えんおう | 1239年 | 仁治 | にんじ | 1240年 |
寛元 | かんげん | 1243年 | 宝治 | ほうじ | 1247年 |
建長 | けんちょう | 1249年 | 康元 | こうげん | 1256年 |
正嘉 | しょうか | 1257年 | 正元 | しょうげん | 1259年 |
文応 | ぶんおう | 1260年 | 弘長 | こうちょう | 1261年 |
文永 | ぶんえい | 1264年 | 建治 | けんじ | 1275年 |
弘安 | こうあん | 1278年 | 正応 | しょうおう | 1288年 |
永仁 | えいにん | 1293年 | 正安 | しょうあん | 1299年 |
乾元 | けんげん | 1302年 | 嘉元 | かげん | 1303年 |
徳治 | とくじ | 1306年 | 延慶 | えんぎょう | 1308年 |
応長 | おうちょう | 1311年 | 正和 | しょうわ | 1312年 |
文保 |
ぶんぽう |
1317年 |
元応 |
げんおう |
1319年 |
元亨 |
げんこう・げんきょう | 1321年 | 正中 | しょうちゅう | 1324年 |
嘉暦 | かりゃく | 1326年 | 元徳 | げんとく | 1329年 |
元弘 | げんこう | 1331年 | 建武 | けんむ | 1334年 |
延元 | えんげん | 1336年 | 興国 | こうこく | 1340年 |
正平 | しょうへい | 1346年 | 建徳 | けんとく | 1370年 |
文中 | ぶんちゅう | 1372年 | 天授 | てんじゅ | 1375年 |
弘和 | こうわ | 1381年 | 元中 | げんちゅう | 1384年 |
明徳 | めいとく | 1390年 | 応永 | おうえい | 1394年 |
正長 | しょうちょう | 1428年 | 永享 | えいきょう | 1429年 |
嘉吉 | かきつ | 1441年 | 文安 | ぶんあん | 1444年 |
宝徳 | ほうとく | 1449年 | 享徳 | きょうとく | 1452年 |
康正 | こうしょう | 1455年 | 長禄 | ちょうろく | 1457年 |
寛正 | かんしょう | 1460年 | 文正 | ぶんしょう | 1466年 |
応仁 | おうにん | 1467年 | 文明 | ぶんめい | 1469年 |
長享 | ちょうきょう | 1487年 | 延徳 | えんとく | 1489年 |
明応 | めいおう | 1492年 | 文亀 | ぶんき | 1501年 |
永正 | えいしょう | 1504年 | 大永 | だいえい・たいえい | 1521年 |
享禄 |
きょうろく |
1528年 |
天文 |
てんぶん |
1532年 |
弘治 |
こうじ | 1555年 | 永禄 | えいろく | 1558年 |
元亀 | げんき | 1570年 | 天正 | てんしょう | 1573年 |
文禄 | ぶんろく | 1592年 | 慶長 | けいちょう | 1596年 |
元和 | げんな | 1615年 | 寛永 | かんえい | 1624年 |
正保 | しょうほう | 1644年 | 慶安 | けいあん | 1648年 |
承応 | じょうおう | 1652年 | 明暦 | めいれき | 1655年 |
万治 | まんじ | 1658年 | 寛文 | かんぶん | 1661年 |
延宝 | えんぽう | 1673年 | 天和 | てんな | 1681年 |
貞享 | じょうきょう | 1684年 | 元禄 | げんろく | 1688年 |
宝永 | ほうえい | 1704年 | 正徳 | しょうとく | 1711年 |
享保 | かんぽほ |
1716年 | 元文 | げんぶん | 1736年 |
寛保 | きょう | 1741年 | 延享 | えんきょう | 1744年 |
寛延 | かんえん | 1748年 | 宝暦 | ほうれき | 1751年 |
明和 | めいわ | 1764年 | 安永 | あんえい | 1772年 |
天明 | てんめい | 1781年 | 寛政 | かんせい | 1789年 |
享和 | きょうわ | 1801年 | 文化 | ぶんか | 1804年 |
文政 | ぶんせい | 1818年 | 天保 | てんぽう | 1830年 |
弘化 | こうか | 1844年 | 嘉永 | かえい | 1848年 |
安政 | あんせい | 1854年 | 万延 | まんえん | 1860年 |
文久 | ぶんきゅう | 1861年 | 元治 | げんじ | 1864年 |
慶応 | けいおう | 1865年 |
明治 |
めいじ |
1868年 |
大正 |
たいしょう |
1912年 |
昭和 |
しょうわ |
1926年 |
平成 | へいせい | 1989年 |
The original Japanese calendar was based off the Chinese lunar calendar, which starts 3 to 7 weeks later than the Western calendar. The traditional names of these months are still popular in poetry, names, etc. You don't have to memorize them or how to write them.
First month |
睦月 | むつき | The month of affection |
Second month |
如月・衣更着 | きさらぎ・きぬさらぎ | The month to change clothes |
Third month |
弥生 | やよい | The month of new life |
Fourth month |
卯月 | うづき | The month full of flowers |
Fifth month |
皐月・早苗月 | さつき | The month to plant rice |
Sixth month |
水無月 | みなつき | The month of water. |
Seventh month |
文月 | ふみづき | The month of books |
Eighth month |
葉月 | はづき | The month of leaves |
Ninth month |
長月 | ながつき | The long month |
Tenth month |
神無月 | かんなづき | The month of the gods |
Eleventh month |
霜月 | しもつき | The month of frost |
Twelfth month | 師走 | しわす | The month where priests run |
Have you ever wondered how you would say things like “I’ve been gone for three, four days”? These round number expressions are called 概数, and this lesson will teach you how to read them. So, it’s important to mention this separately. In reading out, though, you would usually hear #から# or #か# for many situations.
After learning about how to read 概数, we will learn how to read the multiplication table in Japanese, which is called 九九.
The chart below shows how to create 概数 in Japanese, but then the majority of this lesson will be about the difficulty of reading these phrases when counters are put into the mix.
One and two… | いちに | Two and three… | にさん | Three and four… | さんし |
Four and five…. | しご | Five and six… | ごろく | Six and seven… | ろくしち |
Seven and eight… | しちはち | Eight and nine… | はっく・はちく | Nine and ten… | くじゅう |
The Inconsistency of Reading 概数 Phrases
Just as in English, these phrases would be pronounced with the expected word breaks. Unlike English, however, there is no single pronunciation for the majority of these phrases. The information below will address many of the most important things to know, but listening to what people actually say around you is the best way to acquire these phrases.
When dealing with larger numbers, you would not attach いちに to 十 or 百. When さんし is used before 十, 百, 千, 万, 億, or 兆, it is usually realized as さんよ(ん). In fact, さんしひゃく and さんしせん are almost completely got.
しご is oddly enough never changed to よんご. ろくしち to ろくなな will probably become more common as time goes by, but it is currently not widespread.
8~9 is はっく for the majority of people. はちくis usually realized as はちきゅう with はっきゅう coming at a far second in the following cases. 8,000~9,000 can be はちくせん or はっくせん or even はっきゅうせん, but it is usuallyはちきゅうせん. As for 80~90, most people say はちきゅうじゅう but はっきゅうじゅう, はちくじゅう, and はっくじゅう are minority readings. As for 800~900, most people say はちきゅうひゃく. はっきゅうひゃく, はちくひゃく, and はっくひゃく are used by a very small percentage of the population.
What about something like 3~4回? さんよんかい. For 3~4人 and 3~4時間, it is common practice to read them respectively as さんよにん and さんよじかん. Ultimately, さんし has disappeared with counters. 3~4枚 is usually さんよんまい. Another potential reason for this is that さんしまい would sound like 三姉妹.
What about 6~7回? ろくしちかい or ろくななかい are both OK, but just as has been said about, replacing しち with なな has not spread this far as し → よん has in this same environment. So, people overwhelmingly use ろくしちかい. You also use ろくしち in other phrases such as 6~7冊 and 6~7人.
For 8~9回, it’s most common to hear はちきゅうかい instead of はっきゅかい, はちくかい, or はっくかい. In 18~19の少年, it’s common to say じゅうはちく. There’s also the set phrase 十中八九 read as じゅうちゅうはっく meaning “8 or 9 cases out of 10”. For 8~9時間, はちくじかん is most common. Likewise, 8~9人 is usually はちくにん. Replacing さんし with さんよん・さんよ is not so problematic, but replacing はちく with はちきゅう in phrases in which はちく is most common does pose a problem. As for 80~90円 and 800~900円, many people would read them out by using か or から.
Other things to note include what happens with日 and 概数. It has so many exceptions , but you can still say いちににち, にさんにち, しごにち, and ごろくにち. 3~4日 is さんよっか. This could also be read as さんよんにち by a small amount of people, but さんしにち because people would think死日. There’s also ついたち、ふつか and いちにちふつか for 1~2日. This is often rephrased to 一両日 .
Then, 1~2人 read as いちににん is uncommon and usually ひとりかふたり. 2~3人 read as にさんにん, though, is very common.
Oddly enough, 九九 refers to the multiplication chart and is read as くく. In simplified multiplication speech, 被乗数 (the thing being multiplied) and the 乗数 (multiplier) have special pronunciations for certain numbers. In Japanese the thing being multiplied gets stated before the multiplier.
For the multiplicand “one” | いち → いん | いんいちがいち 1 x 1 = 1 |
For the multiplier “eight” | は → は・ぱ | ごはしじゅう 5 x 8 = 40; さんぱにじゅうし 3 x 4 = 24 |
For the multiplier “two” | に → にん | ににんがし 2 x 2 = 4 |
Look at what happens to 3 | さざんがく 3 x 3 = 9; さぶろくじゅうはち 3 x 6 = 18 |
It’s also possible to have 促音 being inserted or shown up as a result of sound change.
ろっくごじゅうし 6 x 9 = 54 | はっくしちじゅうに 8 x 9 = 72 | ごっくしじゅうご 5 x 9 = 45 |
Let’s look at a more complete list. Though you could say things in a more Western fashion as いち かける いち イコール いち, the following manner is perhaps the most important. This is especially the case in reference to the 九九の表.
Below are all of the multiplication table combinations and their special readings.
1の段
1×1=1 いんいちがいち
1×2=2 いんにがに
1×3=3 いんさんがさん
1×4=4 いんしがし
1×5=5 いんごがご
1×6=6 いんろくがろく
1×7=7 いんしちがしち
1×8=8 いんはちがはち
1×9=9 いんくがく
2の段
2×1=2 にいちがに
2×2=4 ににんがし
2×3=6 にさんがろく
2×4=8 にしがはち
2×5=10 にごじゅう
2×6=12 にろくじゅうに
2×7=14 にしちじゅうし
2×8=16 にはちじゅうろく
2×9=18 にくじゅうはち
3の段
3×1=3 さんいちがさん
3×2=6 さんにがろく
3×3=9 さざんがきゅう
3×4=12 さんしじゅうに
3×5=15 さんごじゅうご
3×6=18 さぶろくじゅうはち
3×7=21 さんしちにじゅういち
3×8=24 さんぱにじゅうし
3×9=27 さんくにじゅうしち
4の段
4×1=4 しいちがし
4×2=8 しにがはち
4×3=12 しさんじゅうに
4×4=16 ししじゅうろく
4×5=20 しごにじゅう
4×6=24 しろくにじゅうし
4×7=28 ししちにじゅうはち
4×8=32 しはさんじゅうに
4×9=36 しくさんじゅうろく
5の段
5×1=5 ごいちがご
5×2=10 ごにじゅう
5×3=15 ごさんじゅうご
5×4=20 ごしにじゅう
5×5=25 ごごにじゅうご
5×6=30 ごろくさんじゅう
5×7=35 ごしちさんじゅうご
5×8=40 ごはしじゅう
5×9=45 ごっくしじゅうご
6の段
6×1=6 ろくいちがろく
6×2=12 ろくにじゅうに
6×3=18 ろくさんじゅうはち
6×4=24 ろくしにじゅうし
6×5=30 ろくごさんじゅう
6×6=36 ろくろくさんじゅうろく
6×7=42 ろくしちしじゅうに
6×8=48 ろくはしじゅうはち
6×9=54 ろっくごじゅうし
7の段
7×1=7 しちいちがしち
7×2=14 しちにじゅうし
7×3=21 しちさんにじゅういち
7×4=28 しちしにじゅうはち
7×5=35 しちごさんじゅうご
7×6=42 しちろくしじゅうに
7×7=49 しちしちしじゅうく
7×8=56 しちはごじゅうろく
7×9=63 しちくろくじゅうさん
8の段
8×1=8 はちいちがはち
8×2=16 はちにじゅうろく
8×3=24 はちさんにじゅうし
8×4=32 はちしさんじゅうに
8×5=40 はちごしじゅう
8×6=48 はちろくしじゅうはち
8×7=56 はちしちごじゅうろく
8×8=64 はっぱろくじゅうし
8×9=72 はっくしちじゅうに
9の段
9×1=9 くいちがく
9×2=18 くにじゅうはち
9×3=27 くさんにじゅうしち
9×4=36 くしさんじゅうろく
9×5=45 くごしじゅうご
9×6=54 くろくごじゅうし
9×7=63 くしちろくじゅうさん
9×8=72 くはしちじゅうに
9×9=81 くくはちじゅういち
Using various numbers and or including が seems to be rather random, but one could say that about similar conventions in other languages including English. If you look more closely, you can see that there is regularity. For instance, がis no longer used when the product is 10(+). 8 as a multiplier doesn't change when after 1 or 2. にん is only used after に. The other oddities are in the 3の段.
Not all speakers may pronounce these all the same way, but these would be the "correct" answers you would find in a textbook, and for the most part, educated individuals will pronounce them as such.
Way back when numbers were first discussed, you learned the basic information about numbers in Japanese. However, the Sino-Japanese numbering system can go much farther. This lesson will also consider things not mentioned before such as decimal fractions.
Decimals, 小数 , aren't difficult to make at all in Japanese. First, you need a number before the decimal point, which is simply read out as 点. The actual name for decimal point is 小数点. If you have zero before the decimal point, then you should say ゼロ・れい・まる. If you have a full number before the decimal point, you should say it correctly. So, if there is 300 before the decimal point, say さんびゃく. After the decimal point, you can simply read out the numbers. So, 4.56757 = よん てん ご ろく なな ご なな.
Decimal Fractions
As you can imagine, this is not the traditional way of dealing with decimal values. Decimal fractions, which break up things by negative powers and referred to in simple English as tenths, hundredths, etc. place, are represented in Japanese with a set of decimal fraction units that stand for each place from the decimal point and back.
This seems easy enough, right? Sadly, Japanese doesn't make this 100% straight-forward. There are two different decimal fraction systems in use in Japan today. They are not completely interchangeable and are used in their respective situations.
First Decimal Fraction System
The first decimal fraction system has many units, but practical use ends at 10-2. Even 厘 is not that common. This system is used in batting averages, idioms, etc. Given how important baseball and set expressions are, remembering four small things isn't that bad. The chart below, though, lists all of the possible units in this system for completeness.
10-1 | 分 | ぶ | 10-2 | 厘 | りん | 10-3 | 毛 | もう |
10-4 | 糸 | し | 10-5 | 忽 | こつ | 10-6 | 微 | び |
10-7 | 繊 | せん | 10-8 | 沙 | しゃ | 10-9 | 塵 | じん |
10-10 | 埃 | あい | 10-11 | 渺 | びょう | 10-12 | 漠 | ばく |
10-13 | 模糊 | もこ | 10-14 | 逡巡 | しゅんじゅん | 10-14 | 須臾 | しゅゆ・すゆ |
10-16 | 瞬息 | しゅんそく | 10-17 | 指弾 | しだん | 10-17 | 刹那 | せつな |
10-19 | 六徳 | りっとく | 10-20 | 虚 | きょ | 10-20 | 空 | くう |
10-22 | 清 | せい | 10-23 | 浄 | じょう |
1. 七分袖
Three-quarter sleeves/Sleeves 7/10 the size of a long sleeve.
Second Decimal Fraction System
The second system is not all that different. This one is far shorter and is only used up until 10-5. This is mainly due to the fact that it is used for showing discounts, and prices don't need to be exact as say a scientific finding. This system introduces a different unit for 10-1 and pushes the others from the first system down a power. Realistically, you would never need to go past 分.
10-1 | 割(わり) | 10-2 | 分 | 10-3 | 厘 | 10-4 | 毛 | 10-5 | 糸 |
2. 五分五分の確率
Even odds
3.
九分
九厘
Basically 99% chance, this is used to mean that something is basically so.
4. あの
小旅行
での
往
きの汽車のなかの気楽な対話は、その八九分を隣りのお
喋
りや小さな妹たちに
負
うていたものだとわかった。
I realized that our carefree dialogue on that brief train journey was largely due to the chatterbox behind us and the two little sisters.
Reading Note: 八九分 is read as はっくぶ and literally means 80, 90%, but it is used to mean "largely".
5. 九分九厘勝てる。
We'll almost certainly be able to win.
Reading Note: 9割 is always read as きゅうわり. Also, no one says よわり. It's よんわり.
Percentage
Hopefully you know that .5 = 50%. So, how exactly do you express percentage in Japanese? Thankfully, it's the same as in English. You just have a number and パー(セント)・%.
6. 4.5%
よん てん ご パー(セント)
Fractions
For a fraction ( 分数 ) take a number, add " 分 の" and follow it with another number. This creates phrases such as "三分の二" meaning "two of three parts" or "two thirds".
7. ケーキの四分の一
A quarter/fourth of the cake.
8. 五分の六
Six fifths
Vocabulary Note: Improper fraction in Japanese is " 仮分数 ".
Reading Note: 1/4th is always read as よんぶんのいち.
大字 are formal 漢字 for numbers created to prevent counterfeiting. That sounds like a noble thing to do, but for those that don't like complicated for simple things, they can be annoying additional characters for things you already know. Thankfully, most have become obsolete, so you will only be introduced to the ones pertaining to Japan today.
The only ones that you are responsible for knowing are 1 (壱), 2 (弐), 3 (参), 10 (拾), and 10,000 (萬). The latter is not actually used on currency anymore in Japan, but it does have unofficial usage.
Japanese, with the aid of Sino-Japanese numerals, can be used to count all of the particles of sand on the Earth with greater success. Again, in Japanese big numbers are grouped into powers of four. We stopped in the first lesson concerning numbers at 10^12 (trillion), 兆.
Now, you'll get to see the limit of this system, which is 10^68 until some genius decides to add to this insane list. By no means should you remember any of this as even I only remember a few of these on the spot, but it is some more frivolous and trivial knowledge for fellow Japanese nerds that want to know more about something than the average Japanese speaker. There is some good out of this seemingly nonsensical information. You get to an uncommon reading of 京. You also get to see a weird usage of 不可思議.
なゆた is actually a rather fun word that happens to be used practically to refer to an endless quantity. It sounds fitting, but at look at this system, it is somewhat a misnomer. Well, it's not as bad as the native equivalent of such a concept which treats 千 and 万 as numerous.
If you never remember 秭, don't feel bad. If you tried to use this in practical use--how it would be practical is beyond reason--people will probably think you meant 一助 or that you just made an error.
10^16 | 一京 | いっけい | 10^20 | 一垓 | いちがい |
10^24 | 一秭 | いちじょ・いちし | 10^28 | 一穣 | いちじょう |
10^32 | 一溝 | いっこう | 10^36 | 一潤 | いっかん |
10^40 | 一正 | いっせい | 10^44 | 一載 | いっさい |
10^48 | 一極 | いちごく | 10^52 | 一恒河沙 | いちこうがしゃ |
10^56 | 一阿僧祇 | いちあそうぎ | 10^60 | 一那由[他・多] | いちなゆた |
10^64 | 一不可思議 | いちふかしぎ | 10^68 | 一無量大数 | いちむりょうたいすう |
下数 | 万進(現在) | 万万進 | 上数 | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
105 | 億 | 108 | 一億 | 108 | 一億 | 108 | 一億 |
106 | 兆 | - | - | - | |||
107 | 京 | 1011 | 千億 | 1015 | 千万億 | 1015 | 千万億 |
1012 | 一兆 | 1016 | 一兆 | 1016 | 一兆 | ||
1013 | 十兆 | 1017 | 十兆 | 1017 | 十兆 | ||
1014 | 百兆 | 1018 | 百兆 | 1018 | 百兆 | ||
1015 | 千兆 | 1019 | 千兆 | 1019 | 千兆 | ||
1016 | 一京 | 1020 | 一万兆 | 1020 | 一万兆 | ||
1021 | 十万兆 | 1021 | 十万兆 | ||||
1022 | 百万兆 | 1022 | 百万兆 | ||||
1023 | 千万兆 | 1023 | 千万兆 | ||||
1024 | 一京 | 1024 | 一億兆 | ||||
1025 | 十億兆 | ||||||
1026 | 百億兆 | ||||||
1027 | 千億兆 | ||||||
1028 | 一万億兆 | ||||||
1029 | 十万億兆 | ||||||
1030 | 百万億兆 | ||||||
1031 | 千万億兆 | ||||||
1032 | 一京 |
The commonality that America has with Japan is that there are two competing systems of measurement with one being far more prevalent than the other. The majority of measurements that you will see in Japan will be in the universal metric system. However, there are situations in which native measure words are used instead. Rarer ones, as you can imagine, still live on in literature, set phrases, and other parts of life.
This lesson's primary purpose is to showcase these systems. Whether individual words are used or not will still be mentioned, but the entire lists will be given for those who wish to be pedantic.
English | Quantity | Japanese |
Meter | Distance | メートル |
Gram | Mass | グラム |
Second | Time | 秒 |
Ampere | Electric current | アンペア |
Kelvin | Heat | ケルビン |
Candela | Luminous intensity | カンデラ |
Mole | Amount | モル |
面積 | Area | 長さ | Length | 重さ | Weight | 体積・容積 | Volume/Capacity |
平方センチメートル | cm2 | ミリ[メートル] | mm | ミリグラム | mg | 立方センチメートル | cm3 |
平方メートル | m2 | センチ[メートル] | cm | グラム | g | 立方メートル | m3 |
平方キロメートル | km2 | メートル | m | キロ[グラム] | kg | ミリリットル | ml |
キロ[メートル] | km | トン | Ton | シーシー | cc | ||
リットル | ℓ = Liter |
10-1 | d | Deci- | デシ | 101 | da | Deca- | デカ |
10−2 | c | Centi- | センチ | 102 | h | Hecto- | ヘクト |
10−3 | m | Milli- | ミリ | 103 | k | Kilo- | キロ |
10−6 | μ | Micro- | マイクロ | 106 | M | Mega- | メガ |
10−9 | n | Nano- | ナノ | 109 | G | Giga- | ギガ |
10−12 | p | Pico- | ピコ | 1012 | T | Tera- | テラ |
10−15 | f | Femto- | フェムト | 1015 | P | Peta- | ぺタ |
10−18 | a | Atto- | アト | 1018 | E | Exa- | エクサ |
10−21 | z | Zepto- | ゼプト | 1021 | Z | Zetta- | ゼタ |
10−24 | y | Yocto- | ヨクト | 1024 | Y | Yotta- | ヨタ |
Derived Units
Unit | Japanese | Symbol | Quantity |
Hertz | ヘルツ | Hz | Frequency |
Radian | ラジアン | rad | Angle |
Newton | ニュートン | N | Force |
Pascal | パスカル | Pa | Pressure |
Joule | ジュール | J | Energy |
Volt | ボルト | V | Voltage |
Ohm | オーム | Ω | Impedance |
Watt | ワット | W | Power |
Coulomb | クーロン | C | Electric charge |
Farad | ファラド | F | Electric capacitance |
Lumen | ルーメン | lm | Luminous flux |
Celsius | セルシウス | ℃ | Temperature |
Siemens | ジーメンス | S | Electrical conductance |
Tesla | テスラ | T | Strength of magnetic fields |
Henry | ヘンリー | H | Inductance |
Lux | ルクス | lx | Luminance |
Weber | ウェーバ | Wb | Magnetic flux |
Sievert | シーベルト | Sv | Equivalent dose |
Becquerel | ベクレル | Bq | Radioactivity |
Katal | カタール | kat |
Catalytic activity |
Gray | グレイ | Gy | Absorbed dose |
Usage Note: シーベルト and ベクレル have become frequently used in the news ever since the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Disaster in 2011.
English | Quantity | Japanese |
Meter | Distance | メートル |
Gram | Mass | グラム |
Second | Time | 秒(びょう) |
Ampere | Electric current | アンペア |
Kelvin | Heat | ケルビン |
Candela | Luminous intensity |
カンデラ |
Mole | Amount | モル |
Prefixes of Magnitude
10−1 | d | Deci- | デシ | 101 | da | Deca- | デカ |
10−2 | c | Centi- | センチ | 102 | h | Hecto- | ヘクト |
10−3 | m | Milli- | ミリ | 103 | k | Kilo- | キロ |
10−6 | μ | Micro- | マイクロ | 106 | M | Mega- | メガ |
10−9 | n | Nano- | ナノ | 109 | G | Giga- | ギガ |
10−12 | p | Pico- | ピコ | 1012 | T | Tera- | テラ |
10−15 | f | Femto- | フェムト | 1015 | P | Peta- | ぺタ |
10−18 | a | Atto- | アト | 1018 | E | Exa- | エクサ |
10−21 | z | Zepto- | ゼプト | 1021 | Z | Zetta- | ゼタ |
10−24 | y | Yocto- | ヨクト | 1024 | Y | Yotta- | ヨタ |
Derived Units
Unit | Japanese | Symbol | Quantity |
Hertz | ヘルツ | Hz | Frequency |
Radian | ラジアン | rad | Angle |
Newton | ニュートン | N | Force |
Pascal | パスカル | Pa | Pressure |
Joule | ジュール | J | Energy |
Volt | ボルト | V | Voltage |
Ohm | オーム | Ω | Impedance |
Watt | ワット | W | Power |
Coulomb | クーロン | C | Electric charge |
Farad | ファラド | F | Electric capacitance |
Lumen | ルーメン | lm | Luminous flux |
Celsius | セルシウス | °C | Temperature |
Siemens | ジーメンス | S | Electrical conductance |
Tesla | テスラ | T | Strength of magnetic fields |
Henry | ヘンリー | H | Inductance |
Lux | ルクス | lx | Luminance |
Weber | ウェーバ | Wb | Magnetic flux |
Sievert | シーベルト | Sv | Equivalent dose |
Becquerel | ベクレル | Bq | Radioactivity |
Katal | カタール | kat | Catalytic activity |
Gray | グレイ | Gy | Absorbed dose |
Note: シーベルト and ベクレル have become frequently used in the news ever since the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Disaster in 2011.
English | Quantity | Japanese |
Meter | Distance | メートル |
Gram | Mass | グラム |
Second | Time | 秒(びょう) |
Ampere | Electric current | アンペア |
Kelvin | Heat | ケルビン |
Candela | Luminous intensity |
カンデラ |
Mole | Amount | モル |
Prefixes of Magnitude
10−1 | d | Deci- | デシ | 101 | da | Deca- | デカ |
10−2 | c | Centi- | センチ | 102 | h | Hecto- | ヘクト |
10−3 | m | Milli- | ミリ | 103 | k | Kilo- | キロ |
10−6 | μ | Micro- | マイクロ | 106 | M | Mega- | メガ |
10−9 | n | Nano- | ナノ | 109 | G | Giga- | ギガ |
10−12 | p | Pico- | ピコ | 1012 | T | Tera- | テラ |
10−15 | f | Femto- | フェムト | 1015 | P | Peta- | ぺタ |
10−18 | a | Atto- | アト | 1018 | E | Exa- | エクサ |
10−21 | z | Zepto- | ゼプト | 1021 | Z | Zetta- | ゼタ |
10−24 | y | Yocto- | ヨクト | 1024 | Y | Yotta- | ヨタ |
Derived Units
Unit | Japanese | Symbol | Quantity |
Hertz | ヘルツ | Hz | Frequency |
Radian | ラジアン | rad | Angle |
Newton | ニュートン | N | Force |
Pascal | パスカル | Pa | Pressure |
Joule | ジュール | J | Energy |
Volt | ボルト | V | Voltage |
Ohm | オーム | Ω | Impedance |
Watt | ワット | W | Power |
Coulomb | クーロン | C | Electric charge |
Farad | ファラド | F | Electric capacitance |
Lumen | ルーメン | lm | Luminous flux |
Celsius | セルシウス | °C | Temperature |
Siemens | ジーメンス | S | Electrical conductance |
Tesla | テスラ | T | Strength of magnetic fields |
Henry | ヘンリー | H | Inductance |
Lux | ルクス | lx | Luminance |
Weber | ウェーバ | Wb | Magnetic flux |
Sievert | シーベルト | Sv | Equivalent dose |
Becquerel | ベクレル | Bq | Radioactivity |
Katal | カタール | kat | Catalytic activity |
Gray | グレイ | Gy | Absorbed dose |
Note: シーベルト and ベクレル have become frequently used in the news ever since the Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant Disaster in 201
Before the advent of standardized units, the Japanese used a system of units called the 尺貫法. Remember that these are all 助数詞 (counters)!
Length: The 尺
The 尺 is the basis of the 尺貫法. The 曲尺 was used in carpentry, the 鯨尺 (25% larger than the 曲尺) in clothing, and the 呉服尺 (1.2x larger) in Japanese traditional dress.
Unit | Reading | 尺 Equivalent | Meters |
毛 | もう | 1/10,000 | .00003030 |
厘 | りん | 1/1,000 | .0003030 |
分 | ぶ | 1/100 | .003030 |
寸 | すん | 1/10 | .03030 |
尺 | しゃく | 1 | .3030 |
間 | けん | 6 | 1.818 |
広 | ひろ | 6 | 1.818 |
丈 | じょう | 10 | 3.030 |
町 | ちょう | 360 | 109.1 |
里 | り | 12,960 | 3297 |
Word Notes:
1. 広 is used for depth.
2. 里 previously stood for 600 meters.
Idiom Note: 一寸先は闇, literally "an inch ahead is darkness" is equivalent to "Who knows what tomorrow will bring?".
Area: The 坪
Unit | Reading | 坪 Equivalent | Square Meters |
勺 | しゃく | 1/100 | .03306 |
合 | ごう | 1/10 | .3306 |
畳 | じょう | 1/2 | 1.653 |
坪 | つぼ | 1 | 3.306 |
歩 | ぶ | 1 | 3.306 |
畝 | せ | 30 | 99.17 |
段・反 | たん・ | 300 | 991.17 |
町 | ちょう | 3000 | 9917 |
方里 | ほうり | 1555.2 | 15423 |
Word Notes:
1. The 歩 is used in agriculture whereas the 坪 is used in construction. For units larger than 1, they are used for large areas such as forests.
2. 歩 is often added to 畝, 反, and 町 when reading out measurements. For example, 6反8畝歩.
Volume: The 升
Unit | Reading | 升 Equivalent | Liters |
才 | さい | 1/1000 | .001804 |
勺 | しゃく | 1/100 | .01804 |
合 | ごう | 1/10 | .1804 |
升 | しょう | 1 | 1.804 |
斗 | と | 10 | 18.04 |
石 | こく | 100 | 180.4 |
Unit | Reading | 匁 Equivalent | Grams |
分 | ぶ | 1/10 | .375 |
匁・文目 | もんめ | 1 | 3.75 |
百目 | ひゃくめ | 100 | 375 |
斤(目) | きん(め) | 160 | 600 |
貫(目) | かん(め) | 1000 | 3750 |
In this lesson, we will learn about even more compound verb endings. As the title indicates, all of these endings are in reference to missing out on doing something.
残 す means "to save/leave". In compound verbs it builds upon this meaning to show that "something important was not done before leaving". 残る, the intransitive form, can similarly appear with some words to imply a sense of "being left" in a certain state.
1. その仕事はやり残したんです。
I left the work undone.
2. ソーダを残しておいて。
Save me some soda.
3. 動物の数え方は食べ残る部分からきたと思われる。
It is believed that the method of counting animals comes from the parts left over after eating (them).
4. 食べ残りを排水口に捨てない方がいいと聞いたんですが、本当ですか。
I heard that it is best not to put scraps in the disposal, but is this true?
5. お客さんが食べ残しを持ち帰って体調を崩した場合、飲食店はどのような責任があるのですか。
In the case a customer brings home left overs and gets ill, does the food establishment have any responsibility?
Word Note: 食べ残り and 食べ残し both exist, but the former refers to scraps that aren't suitable for eating later. The latter is "leftovers". As a society, Japanese people don't like for there to be leftovers. Businesses are weary of customers getting sick from leftovers and customers feel a responsibility not to order more than they can eat. Nonetheless, more places in Japan are beginning to add guidelines as to how to make sure leftovers can be taken home safely.
6. 食べ残したご飯を翌日に食べるようにすればよいのでは?
Wouldn't it be good to try to eat left over meals the next day?
7. 食べ残して捨てるのはもったいないです。
Throwing away what you have left over from eating is wasteful.
8. 飲み残したワインを味を落とさないで保存する方法はありますか。
How do you preserve left over wine without losing its taste?
9. 耐乏生活に生き残る。
To live through austerity.
漏 らす means "to leak" and is in compound verbs to show that one ends up not doing something important due to carelessness.
10. 必要なことを言い漏らす。
To end without saying something necessary.
11. うっかりして
年月日
を書き漏らした。
I carelessly forgot to write down the date.
12. 大事なところを聞き漏らした。
I failed to listen to a crucial part.
Contrast Note: The last word is not exactly the same as 聞き逃す, which implies that you didn't listen to the entire thing.
損 なう means "to spoil/ruin" and what happens is always the subject's fault. In compounds it shows what one missed out on doing, and it may be interchangeable with the suffix ~そびれる. Another similar ending is ~ 損 じる which may show that one misses out on or fails in doing something. ~ 逃 す is also possible.
漢字 Note: 損なう is often left in かな.
13. ボールを
捕
り
損
なう。
To miss the ball.
14a. 彼
の
言
ったことを
聞
き
損
なった。
14b. 彼の言ったことを聞きそびれた。(More natural)
I missed out on what he said.
Variant Note: 聞きそびれた would have been a better choice in the sentence above. This is because 聞きそこなう can also mean "mishear".
15a. 健康
を
害
った。
15b. 健康を損なった。(Normal spelling)
15c. 健康を害した。(Alternative phrase)
He ruined his health.
16.
急
いては
事
を
仕損
じる。(ことわざ)
Haste makes waste.
Literally: Rushing fails things.
Orthography Note: 仕損じる means "to blunder". It is often spelled as し損じる, but it can also be seldom spelled as 為損じる. 為る is actually how you would spell する as in "to do" in 漢字. The normal spelling 仕損じる is actually 当 て 字 .
17. 手紙
を
書
き
損
じた。
I made a mistake in writing the letter.
18. 言
い
損
ずる。 (Old-fashioned)
To miss out saying.
Word Note: The following is normally 言い 損 なう or 言い 損 ねる.
Variant Note: Remember that ~じる and ~ずる are variants of each other and that both are voiced forms of する. ~ずる is typically rarer and more formal.
19a. 遊
ぶ
機会
を{
逸
した・逃してしまった}のは
残念
です。(Most natural)
19b. 遊びそこねたのは残念です。(OK)
It's a shame that he missed out on playing.
20. 死
に
損
なって生き恥をさらす。
To fail to die and live on with one's shame exposed.
21.
寝坊
したとき、学校に来る前に何をしそびれましたか。
What did you not do when you came to school after having overslept?
22.
演説
を
聞
き
逃
す。
To fail to listen to the speech.
23. 見逃
してしまうよ。
You’re missing it/you're going to miss it!
Orthography Note: For the meaning of "ruin", 損なう may also be written as 害う. However, because this is not a reading in the 常用漢字表, unversed speakers will not know how it is read and assume it is an error. As such, it is best to only recognize it for when it does show up in literature.
Speech Style Note: ~損ずる is the same as ~損じる etymologically, but the latter is slightly less literary but still unlikely to be used in the spoken language.
果てる means "to come to an end" and is intransitive. Due to its meaning, it may also be a euphemism for "to die". When attached to the 連用形 of a verb, it shows that something has been done completely or up to a given limit. It is often used in a negative fashion.
1.
精
も
根
も尽き
果
てる。
To use up all of one's energy.
2. その
宮殿
は
荒
れ果てている。
The palace is falling into ruin.
3.
処置
に困り果てる。
To be completely perplexed in measures (being taken).
4. 変わり果てた
姿
だな。
It's truly a completely different appearance...
5. 忙しくて
疲
れ果ててしまいました。
I was so busy that I ended up exhausting myself.
6a.
自害
して果てる。
6b. {自害・自殺}する。(More Natural)
To commit suicide.
Similar Ending Note: ~果せる・遂せる・おおせる is similar to ~果てる in spelling, but it actually means "to successfully do". Its usage is rather limited and most commonly seen in literature with verbs such as 死ぬ, 盗む, 生きる, 逃げる, 隠す, etc. As you can see, the connotations are usually quite negative.
7. ネズミのように逃げ遂せる(の)か。
Are you going to successfully run away like a rat?
~付ける derives from its usages as an independent verb on the lines of "attaching". It either shows something out of habit like いつも...する and しなれる or something very firmly or aggressively. The intransitive form is ~付く.
8. 真っ先に駆けつけよ!
Run straight forth!
9. 怒鳴りつけるのは失礼じゃん。
Isn't shouting at someone rude?
10. 彼女の言葉は頭に焼きつけられた。
Her words were burned into my mind.
11. 記憶に焼きついた。
It’s branded into my memory.
12. 彼はふと押し付けた。
He suddenly pushed it on me.
13. この靴を履きつけている。
I'm always wearing these shoes.
14. 銀行は貸し金を貸し付けまくりました。
The banks overly lent out loans in a fury.
尽 くす either means "to administer" or "to work with all one's might". An important set phrase is 筆舌 に 尽 くしがたい" meaning "indescribable". ~尽くす builds upon the latter usage to mean "to do...exhaustively". ~尽くす follows the 連用形.
15. お医者さんは
避難民
のために尽くしています。
The doctor is administering to the refugees.
16. 彼女は
周
りを走り尽くし続けた。
She continued to exhaustively run through the neighborhood.
17.
最善
を尽くす。
To do one's best.
18a.
洪水
は
町全体
をなめ
尽
くした。?
18b. 洪水は町全体を
襲
った。〇
The flood wiped the entire town away.
Literally: The flood licked (away) the town completely.
Sentence Note: There is one problem with 18a. なめ尽くす is used with 炎 ・ 火事 . For example, 山火事はふもとの町をなめ尽くした = The mountain fire licked away the town at the foot of the mountain.
全て VS 全部 VS 全体 VS 全員 VS 総員 VS 皆
Since the last sentence used 全体, this is a perfect time to contrast these six very similar words.
全て | All (of something); everything |
全部 | All as in altogether |
全体 | The entirety of something |
全員 | All members; everyone |
総員 | Same as 全員 but more technical |
皆 | Everyone; everything |
The differences are minor, but they can make a difference. 全部 suggests that there are individual parts. 全体 refers to all of a perimeter.
立てる and 立つ are the transitive and intransitive verb pairs for to stand. ~立てる shows that one does an action energetically. ~立つ shows that an emotion of some sort rises.
19. 僕の心が{浮き立った・ときめいた}。
My heart was enlivened.
20.
声援
に勇み立つ。
To be encouraged by support.
21. 責め立てても無理だよ。
It's useless even if you reproach him.
22.
炎
が燃え立つ。
For flames to blaze.
23. 記者を質問で攻め立てた。
I bombarded the reporter with questions.
こなす may be used to mean "to sell out", "to handle easily", "to break to pieces/digest", or "to use a learned skill at will", and ~こなす means "to do...completely/well".
24. 馬を乗りこなす。
To ride a horse well.
25. 彼女は舞踏会に着こなした。
She was dressed stylishly at the ball.
Some of these endings are a little difficult, so be sure to study hard.
返る means "to return" and is used in compounds to mean "to become completely/extremely". The transitive form of 返す is used after the 連用形 of verbs to show that one does something again starting from the very beginning.
1. 観客はすぐに静まり返った。
The audience automatically fell over.
2.
冴
え返った光を見よ。 (ちょっと古風)
Look at the light that has become completely clear.
3.
悄気返
った彼女は自殺してしまった。
She committed suicide completely disheartened.
4. 思い返して
断念
した。
I reconsidered it and abandoned the plan.
5. もう一度繰り返して下さいませんか。(とても丁寧)
Could you repeat it one more time?
6. 彼は
噎
せ返り続けた。
He continued to sob convulsively.
漢字 Note: 噎 and 悄 are 表外字.
~殴る is used to show that one is doing something rather violently. ~腐る can be used to show disgust in what someone is doing.
7. 記事を書き殴る。
To rapidly write down an article.
8. ぶち殴る。
To beat hard.
9. つまらんことばっかり言い腐ってるやつだな、あんた! (Vulgar)
You're just a guy that just says useless things!
捲る means "to roll up". In compounds it shows something recklessly done without an end in sight.
10. 高校生の時にマンガを読みまくりました。
When I was a high school student, I would do nothing but read manga.
11. 最近パソコンを使いまくってるよ。
I've recently been doing nothing but using the computer.
12. コーラを飲みまくるのは健康のために悪いですよ。
Drinking nothing but cola is bad for your health!
13. しゃべりまくるのはむかつくよね。
Talking on and on is annoying, isn't it?
14. 食べまくるのは人間の性質の短所である。
Eating greedily is a fault in human nature.
15. 電車の中で高校生がしゃべりまくっているのを聞いていた。
I listened to the high school students talked their jaws off on the train.
16. 部屋は荒れまくり。
~My room is just a mess.
通す, following the 連用形 of a verb, it means "to continue to do...until the end". Below is a chart of some common verbs utilizing it.
To persist in | 押し通す |
To continue to read until the end | 読み通す |
To carry through | 遣り通す |
To sing until the end | 歌い通す |
Spelling Note: 透 may be used instead of 通 when showing the transmitting of something such as light. In a more physical sense, 徹 may be used.
This lesson is about the compound verb endings of direction. Not everything is common, but it is important for you to understand things that you may come across.
One of the most unique things about the verb 渡る is its usage in に渡せられる・渡らせ給う, which are rare, literary alternative ways to express ある and いる in honorific speech.
1. あの人は美男に渡らせられる。(Literary and old-fashioned)In compound verbs after the 連用形, ~渡る is used to show the extent of a perimeter over a large area. When used in a transitive sense for the same purpose, it is replaced with its transitive form 渡す.
2. 空が晴れ渡った。
The sky is clear.
3.
城
を明け渡すな。
Do not surrender the castle.
4.
悪魔
に
魂
を売り渡すのは
愚
かことだ。
Selling your soul to the devil is a foolish thing to do.
5.
判事
は判決をそろそろ言い渡すだろう。
The judge will probably pass a sentence soon.
6. インターネット中に知れ渡っている。
To be well-known throughout the internet.
7.
祝砲
が{鳴り渡る・
轟
く}。
For gun salutes to resound.
~出る expresses that something is going out and is, with few exceptions, intransitive. Unlike ~出す which expresses great emphasis that doesn't have to infer direction, ~出る always does.
8.
遺体
から
突
き出ている
刃
A sword protruding from a body
9.
溢
れ出る血が土に
溜
まった。
The flowing blood pooled on the ground.
10. 涙が
湧
き出た。
Tears welled up.
11. 彼は外へ走り出た。
He ran outside.
12.
海底
から
石油
が
浮
き出た。
Oil stood out from the sea floor.
13. 目の
玉
が飛び出るような値段だよ。
It's a price that can make your eyeballs pop out!
上がる and 上げる may be used in compound verbs to show that things are being lifted/raised. As we have learned, 上がる is intransitive and 上げる is transitive. ~上がる and ~上げる may also show the completion of something.
14. 浮き上がっているように見えませんか。
Does it not appear that they're standing out? (As in being visible)
15. そんなにでかすぎる岩持ち上げれるのかい?(Rude)
Can you even lift such a humongous rock?
16. スーツケースを引き上げる。
To lug suitcases up.
17. 彼はボールを投げ上げた。
He threw the ball up into the air.
18a. メモに書き上がる。(More formal)
18b. メモに書いてある。
To be written up in a note.
19.
商品
の値段を
押
し上げる。
To boost product prices.
20.
斜面
を
這
い上がる。
To crawl up a slope.
21.
武器
を取って立ち上がる。
To take up arms.
22. やれやれ、新たな難問が持ち上がったのー。(Old person)
Oh my, a new problem has come up.
~入る and ~入れる are the intransitive and transitive verbal pairs for "to enter". In compound verbs they refer to something completely done or done deeply or ardently.
23.
味方
に引き入れる。
To win over.
24. 恐れ入りました。
I am much obliged.
25. 痛み入る。
To be greatly obliged.
26.
見事
な能力に感じ入る。
To be greatly impressed by astounding abilities.
27.
恥
じ入りました。
I was ashamed.
28.
絶
え入るような顔
A dead looking face
29. 私たちは買い入れるペースを
急激
に上げています。
We are suddenly raising the pace of purchasing.
30. 赤ちゃんが寝入っているうちに両親は買い物に行った。
The parents went shopping while the baby was in a deep slumber.
31. 立ち入ったことを聞くようだが。
If I'm not being too inquisitive.
32. 立ち入り禁止
Keep Out
33.
空欄
に書き入れる。
To fill in blank spaces.
34. 意見を聞き入れる。
To accede an opinion.
35. 新しい
方針
を取り入れるつもりはない。
There is no plan to bring in a new policy.
下がる and 下げる are the verbal pairs for "to hang down/fall" and are intransitive and transitive respectively. The nuances of the verbs that are created with ~下がる and ~下げる are negative.
36. あいつは引き下がるだろう。
He will probably back down.
37. 彼らは{
訴願
・
不服
申し立て・
異議
申し立て}を引き下げた。
They pulled down the petition.
38.
垂
れ下がってる
氷柱
は明日落ちるだろうな。
The hanging icicles will probably fall tomorrow.
39a. 言ったことを取り下げるはずだ。?
39b. 言ったことを{取り消す
撤回
する}はずだ。〇
You should retract what you said.
Word Note: 取り下げる should be used in reference to things like documents/written statements.
Meaning "to go down/drop", おりる and おろす are used in compound expressions to show a sense of going down, but a negative emphasis is not always the case. おりる is typically written as 降りる and おろす is typically written as 下ろす.
40.
舞台
から引き下ろす。
To pluck someone done from a stage.
41. 東京を見下ろす。
To look down at Tokyo.
Word Note: 見下ろす can be used literally and metaphorically.
42. 私の友達は小説を書き下ろしました。
My friend wrote a new novel.
Nuance Note: This suggests that your friend is a professional novelist.
43a.
山頂
から
駆
け降りる。
43b. 山を駆け下りる。
To run down the peak of a mountain.
44.
舞
い降りてきた。
It came flying down.
45. 強風が吹き下ろしていた。
A strong wind was blowing down.
落ちる and 落とす are the verbal pairs for "to fall/drop" and are intransitive and transitive respectfully. These verbs show a downward sense of direction in a compound verb.
46. この世に生れ落ちなくてよかったのに。
If only I had not been born in this world.
47. 焼け落ちるのにほんの五分もかからなかったぞ。
It only took a mere five minutes to burn down.
48. 俺の皿から
滑
り落ちちまった。(Mature male; vulgar)
It slipped from my plate.
49. 彼が水を
払
い落とした。
He shook off the water.
50. {見落とされた・見過ごされた}のかな。
I wonder if it was overlooked.
51. 銀行口座から引き落とす。
To charge from one's bank account.
52.
果物
を振り落とそう。
Let's shake some fruit off.
53. 家を
崖
から
突
き落とすのは
危
ないよ。
Pushing a house off of a cliff is dangerous.
回る and 回す are the verbal pairs for "to turn/rotate" and are intransitive and transitive respectively. When used in compounds, they show movement while doing something. ~回る can be seen attached to both intransitive and transitive verbs, but ~回す is limited to transitive verbs. It is to be expected that a nuance difference is present when both ~回る and ~回す can be used. You will see this more clearly in the examples below.
54. あちこちを駆け回る。
To run around here and there.
55. 仕事を探し回るつもりがあるのか。
Do you have any intentions of looking about for a job?
56. 自分の周りを見回した方がよいです。(ちょっと古風; Formal)
It is best to look around one's surroundings.
57. 私は新車を
駐車場
に乗り回したいです。
I want to ride around a new car in a parking lot.
58. 警備員
は
輪番
で見回ります。
The guards patrol in rotations.
Nuance Note: This infers that there are a lot of guards patrolling in rotation. You may consider using 交代で instead of 輪番で.
59. 犯人
を
追
い回す。
To chase about a criminal.
These will be the final set of endings that you'll have to go through.
こける means "sink/collapse in". ~こける means that something continues on for a long time.
1. 眠りこける。
To sleep deeply.
2. 笑いこける。
To laugh heartily.
~さす either shows that you stop in the middle of something that you have just started or that something is being delayed that has been going on.
Word Note: ~さす comes from 止す.
途中
途中 means "during" and is a noun. It can refer to being on the way to somewhere or something not yet completed and is in a state of progress. In the above sentences, it was followed by being stopped mid-way.
6. 買い物に行く途中で・・・
In the middle of going to go shopping...
7. 演奏を途中でやめる。
To end a performance midway.
8. 来る途中で事故がありました。
There was an accident on my way.
~倦む・倦ねる follows the 連用形 and shows that something is too much for somebody or that one is tired of something. The verb and the resultant verbs are intransitive.
9. 考え倦んだ結果、私は辞職します。
As my plans haven't shaped out, I will resign.
10. 待ちあぐむ。
I can no longer wait.
11. 攻めあぐねる。
To lose the fighting initiative.
逸れる means "to stray" and -逸れる shows that "one has missed out on something". It is also more emphatic as ~っぱぐれる.
12. 逸れた羊を捜し求めていた。
I searched for the stray sheep.
13. 取りはぐれた宝石
Jewelry missed taking
14. 僕はデザートを食いっぱぐれちゃった。
I ended up missing out on desert.
15. 行きはぐれる。
To miss out on going.
成す has a few related meanings, of these are "to form", "to do", "to accomplish", "to establish", "to give birth to", etc. In compound verbs it shows a meaning of intention and deliberate action.
16. 織り成した人生模様
Interwoven facets of life
17. 思いなしか。
Maybe it's my imagination?
18. 我々は彼を指導者と見なした。
We looked at him as our leader.
古す means "to wear out" and is attached to the 連用形 to create compound verbs that depict that "time and time again, X loses its newness". Two common verbs that you will see this ending used with are 着る "to wear" and 言う "to say".
19. 着古して大分擦り切れてた。
It was worn-out and quite threadbare.
20. あのおやじー、いつも使い古した言葉をいって使い古した帽子を被ってんのさ。(砕けた)
That old guy's always saying worn-out phrases and is always wearing worn-out hats.
21. 着古しの上着だな。(Masculine)
That's an old worn-out jacket, isn't it?
22. ちょっと言い古されてるが、光陰矢のごとしは本当だよ!
It's a little cliche, but time really does fly like an arrow.
Usage Note: 言い古す is always seen in the 受身形.
Now that you have learned a lot about the volitional and negative volitional form with verbs, you need to learn about how to make an adjectival volitional phrase and know what it can mean. Furthermore, there are old-fashioned ways of saying things that you'll still encounter and need to know.
The auxiliary ~う can also attach to the 未然形 of adjectives. Now, we haven't ever had to use this so far. So, we will first look at what this conjugation looks like.
Class | Construction | Example | Class | Construction | Example |
形容詞 | から+う → かろう | 新しかろう | 形容動詞 | だら+う → だろう | 簡単だろう |
Pronunciation Note: Remember that ”ろう" is pronounced as "ろー".
For 形容詞 this pattern has become longer but easier to use. So, instead of 新しかろう, you use 新しいだろう. Why the original pattern became old-fashioned is not certain, but だろう・でしょう are far more prevalent now. And, using them instead makes the conjugation the same for 形容詞 and 形容動詞.
Now, rather than meaning "let's...", which is verbal by nature, the adjectival volition's main meaning is to show guess. This is equivalent to "probably", but according to context, it can be closer to guess about the future rather than present state.
1. 安かろう悪かろう。(Set Phrase)
Cheap is rubbish/You get what you pay for.
2. 早かろう悪かろう。 (Set Phrase)
Finishing early surely means a worse off result.
3. 一人きりは寂しかろう。(Old-fashioned)
It must be lonely being all alone.
4. あの紙が黄色かろう。(Old-fashioned)
That paper {is/will} probably be yellow.
5. 水面の下を泳ぐ魚たちは悲しかろう。 (Old-fashioned)
The fish swimming beneath the water's surface are surely sad.
6. 喜ばしかったでしょうに、お旅は残念でした。(Somewhat vague)
Even though one would have thought it to be delightful, the trip was regrettable.
7. 遠かったでしょうに、歩いてきたのですか。
Although one would think it to have been far, you came here by walking?
If you want to say something like "let's have it easy", you would need to use ~{く・に}する+Volitional. So, you would need the adjective in its 連用形 to be used as a 副詞 and then used with a verb. After all, "volition", the will to do something, naturally requires a verbal element. So, why not use する?
8. それを簡潔にしましょう。
Let's make this simple.
9. 試験を合格することをもっと難しくしましょうか。
How about we make it harder to pass the exams.
10. このぶす女郎、クアグマイアにきれいにしてもらおうか。(Vulgar)
How 'bout we have Quagmire clean up this ugly whore.
Personal Note to Disregard: Yes, watching Family Guy gave me inspiration to make this sentence.
The one time that the traditional adjectival volitional form for 形容詞 is used often in Modern Japanese aside from set phrases is in the pattern ~かろう{が・と}~かろう{が・と}. This is equivalent to "whether...or...", and the adjectival phrases that you choose should be reasonably contrastive, and antonymous phrases are your best options.
11. 休日であろうが、なかろうが、仕事をしなければならない。
A holiday or not, you have to do your job.
12. 彼女が実の犯人であろうとなかろうと、中国で有罪の判決が言い渡されたから、 もうすぐ処刑されるだろう。
Whether or not she's the true criminal or not, because she's been found guilty in China, she will probably be executed soon.
13. 寒かろうが暑かろうが、試合を中止しないよ。
Whether it's hot or cold, I won't postpone the game.
14. 古かろうが新しかろうが、そんなもの買ったとしても、あてにならないよ。
Whether it's old or new, even if you were to buy something like that, it won't do you any good.
15. 母さんが夜なべをして、手袋、編んでくれた。木枯らし吹いちゃ、冷たかろうに、せっせと編んだんだよ。
Mother knitted mittens for me on her night ship. Even though it was supposed to be cold with the wintry breeze blowing, she diligently knitted it.
From a song entitled 母さんの歌. Original lyrics have been changed to more standard Japanese.
16. 美しかろうが醜かろうが、人間は人間だ。
Whether beautiful or ugly, a human is a human.
17. 黒かろうが白かろうが、蝶を俺のトカゲのエサとしか思えない。
Whether it's white or black, I can only think of butterflies as food for my lizard.
As ~ない conjugates as a 形容詞, ~なかろう = ~ない{だろう・でしょう} for verbs as well.
18. 富山氏は当選しなかろう。(Old-fashioned).
Mr. Toyama will probably not be elected.
喜
ばしかったでしょうに、お
旅
は
残念
でした。
Even though one would have thought it to be delightful, the trip was regrettable.
遠
かったでしょうに、
歩
いてきたのですか。
Although one would think it to have been far, you came here by walking?
In polite speech (and thus more rare) as ~ましたろう, this is equivalent to ~ただろう. Of course, because だろう has been becoming more vulgar, ~たでしょう is usually the better equivalent.
19a. 新しくなかったろう。(Old-fashioned)
19b. 新しくなかったでしょう。(Natural)
It probably wasn't new.
20. よろしかったろう。(Old-fashioned)
It was surely good.
21. もう少し注意したなら、成功したろうに。→ もう少し注意したなら、成功しただろうに。 (もっと自然)
If you would have payed just a little more attention, you would have succeeded.
When you use less contracted forms, you are naturally being more polite/formal. When you use であろう instead of だろう, you are most likely writing down your statement. Even so, this is rather formal, and in this case, it makes the statement sound more definitive and objective. Thus, it isn't surprising that it has been used a lot in the Bible.
22. 努力の甲斐があれば
成功
するであろう。
Success will surely reward you for availing efforts.
23.
必
ずや
成功
するであろう。
You will absolutely succeed.
24. エジプトでは
反政府派
のデモ
隊
は
逆境
にあっても、
挫
けないであろう。
Even in adversity, the anti-government demonstrators in Egypt will surely not crumble.
25. すると、ペテロが答えた、「悔い改めなさい。そして、あなたがたひとりびとりが罪のゆるしを得るために、イエ ス・キリストの名によって、バプテスマを受けなさい。そうすれば、あなたがたは聖霊の賜物を受けるであろう。 …」
Then, Peter said unto them, "Repent and be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
使徒行伝 第2章38節 Acts 2:38
~でありましょう is the polite form and is not necessarily literary. This is because でしょう may not cut it for being formal enough in some situations, and this would be your next alternative before using something like でございましょう・でいらっしゃいましょう (both of which are possible). Like with everything in this lesson, this is not used anymore.
26. あちらの方をご存じでありましょうか。 → あちらの方をご存じですか。 (Natural)
Do you know that individual?
27. 極めて良心的な店でありましょう。 → 極めて良心的な店でしょう。 (Natural)
My, isn't it an extremely upright store.
The negative で(は)なかろう is the negative form, and it is literary with the same nuances as its positive counterpart. The polite form of this, でありますまい, is extremely old-fashioned and is essentially only preserved in the most elegant 敬語 and literature from by-gone eras.
28. 純粋な月影石でなかろう。 → 純粋な月影石ではないでしょう。 (Modern)
It is probably not a genuine moon rock.
29. テロでなかろうがデモは規制する。
Though it may not be terror, we'll control demonstrations.
Infamous poor words of 石破茂.
ら抜き is the dropping of ら in the auxiliary verb ~られる when used to show potential. Although it is deemed improper by many speakers, it is important to point out that the independent potential verb forms of 五段 did not exist as ‘standard’ Japanese 150 years ago. This lesson will be about how ら抜き is being used in the current speech of a growing majority.
ら抜き, again, is the dropping of ら in the auxiliary ~られる. The ease of conjugation is quite obvious. ~れる attaches the exact same way as ~られる does.
Verb Class | Base | Conjugation Example | 例文 |
上一段活用動詞 | 未然形 | 見る+れる → 見れる | テレビ{が・を}見れる |
下一段活用動詞 | 未然形 | 食べる +れる → 食べれる | ピザ{が・を}食べれる |
Grammar is a living entity defined by current speakers. It is not surprising that this innovation came about because ~られる has three other usages! It is also used to make passives, phrases of spontaneity, and light honorific phrases. These things are complicated enough to require separate lessons.
One could say that the grammar is just too different for each usage to ever confuse them. For instance, in addition to ら抜き being bad, others will also point out that the use of を with potential phrases is traditionally incorrect. Thus, if people were using traditional, correct grammar, one would never confuse the potential in particular with any of the other three usages because of the use of が to mark the object. There is a reason for this particle choice, but we will treat が and を here as being interchangeable as the number of speakers who do not distinguish them at all in this situation is increasing.
Mistaking Words?
Because ~れる only has the potential meaning, there is assurance that you are only purveying the potential meaning. Furthermore, if the phenomenon is so well known that speakers refer to words with it as ら抜き言葉, there is no chance that someone won’t understand you. That is not say that there are no examples of once separate phrases now being homophonous. For example, 切れる (to be able to cut) and 着れる (to be able to wear) may not even be distinguished by intonation in some reasons. This problem, though, can be viewed as very rare. For the sake of bringing this sort of problem up, there is also 寝れる VS 練れる, and 送れる VS 遅れる.
1. 古い服を着れた!
I was able to wear my old clothes!
2. ハサミでよく切れた!
I was able to cut it well with scissors!
3. あの人は、ある程度練れた文章を書けました。
That person was able to write to a certain degree a well-rounded composition.
4. 寝れない夜を過ごしてる。
I'm spending sleepless nights.
5. とりあえず何とか完成して送れた。
For the time being, I somehow finished it and was able to send it.
6. ひどい交通渋滞で遅れた。
I was late due to horrible congestion.
Word Form Note: Ex. 5 and 6 show us that this talk of confusion is void. 送れる is not ら抜き and is the proper potential form of 送る. No speaker is ever going to confuse it with 遅れる in context.
7. 大雨が降ってこんなとこに居れるわけない。
There's no way I'll be able to stay here in this rain.
8. サクランボを容器に入れる。
To put cherries in a container.
More Info on ら抜き言葉
In formal writing, ら抜き言葉 are almost non-existent, but in day-to-day writing, it is appearing more frequently. However, the fact that people typically don’t like characters in books featuring these words is rather interesting.
With the percentage of the population which doesn't use ら抜き言葉 at all being a small minority, and with the existence of politicians and the like using it frequently on the air, one can easily imagine this solidifying as “new correct Japanese” in the near future. Change is often hated when in progress. So, for this reason, an actual news anchor or journalist will never use it unless quoting the words of an interviewee. Subtitles and tel-ops often reinsert ら if missing in speech, which is perhaps the media’s way of reversing the change, though they are clearly losing the battle with such tactics. It is also a fact that ら抜き言葉 are readily type-able, which will only facilitate the spread of this change.
Treating it as Dialectical?
What about the dialects in which ら抜き is the standard? They are probably under influence from regions which say it’s backward, but because it is the standard in these regions and it is becoming standard elsewhere, it’s hard to imagine any of these regions reverting to the current ‘standard’.
Frequency of Use
Some verbs will be more commonly used with ~れる than others. For instance, in casual speech, one may easily say 見れる, 来れる, 食べれる, しゃべれる and the like. It may, though, be the case that you are not prone to extending this to any verb including compounds (for instance, saying 出かけれる).
9. いつまで続けれるのか。
How long can...continue?
10. なかなか準備し始めれないのだ。
I can't seem to start preparing.
Speech Style
We've touched upon register just now. Register refers to speech style in social context. Say you are the boss of a company and wish to enforce ‘proper language’ habits on your employees. This is a very understandable situation in modern Japan, and in honorifics, new colloquialisms are not easily accepted, and in the case of honorifics, potential phrases are avoided to begin with. Some people go so far as to say ~れます instead of ~られます in casual, polite speech is an abomination. Continue to see more examples of this as years go by. Some claim that people are beginning to use this in honorifics, but this is hard to believe. It is more likely the person intended to use the potential form to his boss, which is a マナー違反 to begin with.
11. 何時に来れますか。
When can you come?
Relation with other Auxiliaries
It is important to note that ら抜き would not be used in 共通語 with older (usages of) auxiliaries.
12. 見られよう → 見れよう X
In speaking of other auxiliaries, people very frequently use the ~よう conjugation to correct people. So, you may find people saying, if you use ~よう then you should use ~られる. Another example is using the 命令形. If you drop る from the potential and don’t get a valid command form, then you can't use ~れる. As 五段 verbs would only work, 見れる is invalid because 見れ is invalid. This opinion is cute, but there are dialects which allow for the imperatives of 一段 verbs to end in れ. So, for certain regions of Japan, this analogy would not work.
Odd Dialectical Phenomena
In some dialects such as 広島弁, corruptions such as 行けれる can be found. This resembles the slang phenomenon by a minority of speakers to take ~られる and attach it to the 連用形 of the 短縮形 (shortened form) of the potential. Ex. 出す → 出せられる. This, though, like 行けれる are deemed to be errors by most Japanese speakers.
More Examples
13. 早く
起
きれねーよ。(Vulgar)
I can't wake up early!
14. お金払わないと、得れないもんだ。
It's something you can't get without paying money.
15. ハイしか答えれないんだ。
All I can response with is "ハイ”.
16. こうして食べると野菜もたくさん食べれるね。
If you eat this way, you can eat a lot of vegetables.
17. いつもよりたくさん食べれた。
I was able to eat a lot more than usual.
18. (Aさんは)きのうの雨で熱が出て来れないようだ。
(A-san) doesn't seem to be able to come because he got a fever from the rain yesterday.
19. 出かけれそうにない。
It doesn't seem I have a chance at going out.
20. うまくボールを蹴れない。
I can't kick the ball well.
21. あと一歩で教室から出れるところで、ドアが突然閉まった。
Just when I was one step away from being able to leave the classroom, the door suddenly shut.
The next wave of verbs that are transitive but created from a causative element are verbs ending in the suffix ~かす. The first thing that comes to mind when seeing these two sounds together is カス (scum). This is a very useful insult, but leaving jokes aside, this lesson will be about a somewhat productive ending that you will inevitably come across most frequently in casual situations.
The majority of verbs with ~かす are rougher/stronger phrases limited to casual contexts, but this is not the case for all of them. The frequency of this suffix depends on the dialect, but Standard Japanese has plenty of examples for us to study.
When confronted with examples of verbs ending in the suffix ~かす, some think that is a casual ending of recent origin. In reality, though, verbs with it have existed for as long as Japanese has been written down. The かす we see appears to derive from the transitive form of できる, でかす. This verb comes about from simply adding す to deki-. でかす is equivalent to うまくやる. If speakers misinterpreted this as inserting a か before す, then this explains its appearance in other verb forms.
Next we have the similar looking しでかす, which is used in almost completely contrary situations of contriving and failing. Although しでかす is most often written as 仕出かす in 漢字, it may also be spelled as 為出かす. The original meaning of しでかす was し(い)だす. This verb, which still exists as しだす, means "to start to do something". The intransitive form of 出す is 出る. This makes it more obvious that か is what was inserted. From here, we have a motivation for inserting か into other verbs.
For the most part, か optionally appears in transitive forms to create a rougher expression. The vulgar nature of カス as in the noun should not be ignored as a motivation for most of the examples being rough in nature today as folk etymology can do wonders.
Rarely is it an integral part of the phrase in Standard Japanese, but such examples do exist (寝かす, 唆す). However, its appearance in a variety of words throughout the language's dialect suggests that かす has indeed been used as a rather productive ending. Whether or not it has a causative meaning or is used to simply make a transitive verb depends on the individual verb. If a verb with かす has no 自動詞形, it's fair to say that the form has since disappeared.
More Example Words
1. また同じ失敗をやらかしたくない。
I don't want to make the same mistake again.
Word Note: 遣らかす is a ぞんざいな言い方 for やる and is generally fully written in ひらがな. It may also be a rough way of saying 食べる・飲む, but this is really rare and unheard of to many.
2. 内緒にしてたんだけど、コロラド州にいたときに、大麻を1服やらかしたんだ。
I've kept it as a secret, but when I was in Colorado, I smoked a joint of weed.
3. 真面目な話を茶化してごめんなさい。
I'm sorry for making a joke out of something serious.
Spelling Note: 誤魔化す・胡麻化す are both 当て字.
4. おちゃらかすんじゃありません。
I'm not making a joke of anything.
5. 部屋を散らかさないで。
Don't mess up the room.
Word Note: 散らかす can be viewed as the transitive form of 散らかる, but it is often interchangeable with 散らす. Both 散らす and 散らかす can be used as supplementary verbs to describe rough, random, and or disorderly conduct. 散らかす has a rougher feeling. It fits very well when making a mess of things.
6. ゴミを撒き散ら(か)す人がいっぱいいる。
There are a lot of people who scatter trash.
7. 魔法を駆使して群がる敵を蹴散ら(か)そう。
Let's scatter our gathering enemies by commanding our magic.
8a. お茶碗うるかしといて。 (北海道弁)
8b. お茶碗冷やしといて。 (茨城弁)
8c. お茶碗浸しといて。
Soak the tea cups.
方言 Note: 冷やす means to "cool down", but in some regions it oddly means 浸す (to soak). In 北海道, we can find the ~かす verb うるかす for 浸す. This appears to come from the verb 潤す (to moisten). 冷やかす either sounds somewhat archaic, slangish, or dialectical for the meaning of "to cool down", but it is frequently used with the meaning "to ridicule", undoubtedly from the original sense of the word.
使い分け Note: 冷やかす is very similar to からかう and 茶化す. All of these words are used for describing when you say something to amuse oneself that makes someone mad, embarrasses and or troubles someone. からかう can mean "to ridicule" towards non-human things and via actions other than words, which is not the case for 冷やかす and 茶化す.
語源 Note: 茶化す’s origin is uncertain, but it does have other forms like おちゃらかす and ちゃらかす and can be viewed as a ~かす verb. Some think that it is from チャルメラ (an oboe used at ramen stands) turned into a verb by using チャ. Some think it is merely a contraction of 茶と化す (to turn into something of ridicule). This use of 茶 to mean "ridicule" comes from 茶にする which started from meaning "to take a break" to "to make fun of". This could still be the origin even with the other forms because if people were to then treat 化す as ~かす and know it should be used with the 未然形, ちゃらかす would naturally come about. Regardless of origin, these '~かす verbs' are relatively new.
9. あんた、人の話をおひゃらかすなよ。 (Dialectical)
Don't be ridiculing what others are saying.
10. 全く犯罪を行う意思がない人を唆すことは教唆犯となります。
Alluring someone with absolutely no criminal intent is criminal instigation.
Form Note: 唆す does not have a 自動詞. Neither does 見せびらかす, 誑かす, or ちょろまかす.
11. 誑かされる人が存在する限り、哲学はなくならない。
For as long as there are those who are deceived, philosophy will not go away.
12. 教師というのは知識をひけらかしているわけではないのだ。
It's not that a teacher is flaunting knowledge.
13. あの人は、質問をほとんどはぐらかした。
That person dodged almost all of the questions.
14. 人の目を盗んでちょろまかす。
To deceive and steal without being noticed.
15. ちょっとあいつをだまくらかしてやれ。
Swindle that guy!
16. 弟はまた宿題を途中まで(やって)ほったらかしたよ。
My little brother left his homework half-done again.
17. 人前で自分の富を見せびらかす。
To show off one's riches in front of others.
18. 赤ん坊を寝かす。
To lay a baby down.
There are few instances in Japanese grammar where さ gets inserted for apparently no reason. There are three different instances of this in Japanese.
One application of さ入れ言葉 is found within the causative conjugations. The causative conjugation is believed to be derived from the auxiliary す, which is etymologically the same as する attaching to the 未然形. When used with 一段動詞 and 来る, さ would be inserted, which gives us ~さす・~させる today.
五段動詞 (飲む) | 一段動詞 (分ける) | ||
語幹 | nom- | 語幹 | wake- |
終止形 | nom-u | 終止形 | wake-ru |
使役形 | nom-ase- | 使役形 | wake-sase- |
Here, it is clear that the inclusion of さ in the right-hand column is a completely natural and correct. Now, consider what’s happening now (at least for a small subset of people).
五段動詞 (読む) | 一段動詞 (食べる) | ||
使役形 | ? yom-asase- | 使役形 | * tabe-sasase- |
This is what is now meant by さ入れ言葉 because an unnecessary さ is being inserted. This phenomenon only affects 五段動詞, as you can imagine if it’s already occurred in 一段動詞 in the past. Therefore some people have proposed that this phenomenon has come about from an analogical leveling with the causative element “sase” found with 一段動詞.
A few things have come to light about the use of さ入れ言葉.
1. It is a language change that has begun to increase in usage in recent years.
2. Its use is spreading and will continue to be used more frequently.
3. There is a tendency for it to appear in ceremonious speech. The more formal the situation, the more likely it is to be used. It does not appear in idioms or nominalized expressions.
4. Sometimes, there are combinations where a combination may be considered a correct usage of the causative or an instance of さ入れ言葉. For example, consider the word 飛ばす. If treated as a transitive verb pair of 飛ぶ, 飛ばさせる is the logical causative form. If you analyze it as the causative form of 飛ぶ, then this form would be an example of さ入れ言葉. This all depends on whether there is an object for the verb or not. In the following example, it is a clear case of さ入れ言葉.
Ex. ちょっと時間の関係で飛ばさしていただきまして…
I would like to skip through with a small concern of time.
5. It possesses nuances not necessarily found in the “correct usage” of the causative.
6. It is becoming grammaticalized with ~させていただく. It is used with this pattern more than anything else. It is marginally seen with ~てもらう, ~た, ~ない, ~る. However, every other conjugation is not really attested. Thus, it may become the case that さ入れ言葉 will only occur with ~させて{いただく・もらう} within a few decades and potentially become standard. Nevertheless, its usage as a long way to go before it is used equally with the current standard form.
7. It is only used with verbs that imply speaker self-control.
8. It does not appear when double さ would occur.
9. It hardly ever shows up with verbs at or above five morae. This is understandable because if this change is believed to be in the beginning stage, you would expect it to pop up in short but very frequently used verbs.
10. Overall, women use this slightly more than men, which is evidence that this phenomenon is its beginning stage as women are the pioneers of language change. It is important to note, though, that there is a tendency for women to use this more the more formal of a situation they find themselves in, and the opposite trend can be said for men, which is probably due to a prescriptive grammar take on things
11. People born before 1940s don’t really use this. People born after this time are progressively using it more. Nevertheless, the percentage of people who use さ入れ言葉 is still quite small.
12. This pattern is spreading via the 関東地方, but whether it is being spread through people after relocation or it’s something being picked up through other means is uncertain.
13. It is most frequent in spontaneous speech. Meaning, if there is any preparation involved in the delivery of a message, it is more likely not going to be used. Thus, there is no trend suggesting that this pattern has started to seep in 書き言葉. This is further evidence to suggest that it is overall in the beginning stage of diffusion.
14. This pattern is still viewed as an error that should be fixed. However, because it is used to elevate politeness, when it is used, the context requires more elaborate honorific speech. This explains the demographic demonstrations mentioned thus far.
With the adjective ない, さ must be inserted. This gives なさすぎる. ~すぎる should attach directly to the stem of ~ない. The inclusion of さ to the auxiliary ~ない to make it more flowing is catching on among some young people, but it is not deemed to be correct Japanese.
1. 彼は何もできな(さ)すぎる。
He can't do anything.
2. 彼は世間をあまりにも知らな(さ)すぎる。
He knows too little of the world.
Using さ入れ with 少ない or 汚い because they naturally end in /nai/ is not correct. This misuse has not caught on. This is also the case for any other words that happen to end in /nai/.
With ~そうだ meaning "to seem", it is obligatory that さ be inserted when used with the adjectives よい and ない. Nowadays, it is common to use さ with ない even when it is used as an auxiliary, which is traditionally not correct.
Though percentages of speakers who add さ to these additional words is small, there are natives who attach it to other adjectives only two morae long. For instance, 濃い + そう → 濃そうだ is standard, but a very small minority uses 濃さそうだ. This is no doubt dialectical, but it's fascinating that it exists.
Another example is 憂い. This adjective is normally replaced by 物憂い. What's interesting is that さ is often seen inserted when 物憂い is used with ~そうだ. Now, because of the limited use of 憂い, 憂さそうだ would be hard to attest. So, it is safe to say it practically does not exist. 酸い, now usually 酸っぱい except in set phrase or some dialects, would also fit into this category, but 酸っぱさそうだ is not valid, and it is unclear whether 酸さそうだ is.
Classroom Usage: You should only use さ with 良い and 無い. Although it is linguistically correct to say other instantiations exist, your teachers seek what is thought to be true Standard Japanese. Thus, it is best to avoid things that may be given an X on test.
Prefixes, 接頭語, are key to understanding hundreds of phrases in Japanese. If you are unable to find a word in a dictionary, it is probably because the word you are looking for has a prefix or a suffix.
Although there are some that may have a few possible purposes, prefixes are generally one phrase definitions or are taught as such. The chart below illustrates the most common and easy prefixes you will see and should know in Japanese. Definitions of example words should show whether the word is a noun or an adjective.
Prefix | 仮名 | Meaning(s) | Examples |
亜 | あ |
|
亜熱帯(あねったい) Subtropics |
相 | あい |
|
相等(あいひと)しい Equal to each other |
空き | あき |
|
空き缶(あきかん) Empty can 空き瓶(あきびん) Empty bottle |
幾 | いく |
|
幾久(いくひさ)しく Forever |
薄 | うす |
|
薄明(うすあ)かり Dim light |
小 | お |
|
小川(おがわ) Brook |
御 | お | See Lesson 127 | |
大 | おお |
|
大違(おおちが)い Completely different |
御 | お(ん)み | See Lesson 146 | |
御 | おん | See Lesson 146 | |
過 | か |
|
過保護(かほご) Over-protection |
各 | かく |
|
各国(かっこく) Every nation |
金 | きん |
|
金1000円(きんせんえん) Cash 1000 yen |
小 | こ |
|
小雨(こさめ) Shower |
御 | ご | See Lesson 146 | |
再 | さい |
|
再選挙(さいせんきょ) Reelection |
最 | さい |
|
最高級(さいこうきゅう) Top-class |
純 | じゅん |
|
純愛(じゅんあい) Pure love |
準 | じゅん |
|
準決勝(じゅんけっしょう) Semifinal |
諸 | しょ |
|
諸国 (しょこく) Every nation |
新 | しん |
|
新世界 (しんせかい) New world |
全 | ぜん |
|
全責任(ぜんせきにん) Full responsibility |
総 | そう |
|
総利益 (そうりえき) Gross profit |
第 | だい |
|
第3(だいさん) Number 3 |
大 | だい |
|
大首都圏(だいしゅとけん) Greater metropolitan area |
築 | ちく |
|
築5年 Five years since construction |
超 | ちょう |
|
超大国 (ちょうたいこく) Superpower |
当 | とう |
|
当問題 (とうもんだい) This issue |
共 | とも |
|
共働き(ともばたらき) Both working |
初 | はつ |
|
初霜(はつしも) First frost of the year |
反 | はん |
|
反政府(はんせいふ) Anti-government |
半 | はん |
|
半ズボン(はんずぼん) Shorts |
非 | ひ |
|
非公式(ひこうしき) Informal |
一 | ひと |
|
一時(ひととき) A time |
不 | ふ |
|
不必要 (ふひつよう) Unnecessary |
無・不 | ぶ |
|
無意識 (むいしき) Unconscious |
不可 | ふか |
|
不可思議(ふかしぎ) Mysterious |
古 | ふる |
|
古本(ふるほん) Used book 古新聞(ふるしんぶん) Used newspaper |
本 | ほん |
|
本店(ほんてん) Home office |
真(ん・っ) | ま(ん・っ) |
|
真ん丸 (まんまる) Perfect circle |
毎 | まい |
|
毎年(まいとし) Every year |
豆 | まめ |
|
豆鉄砲(まめてっぽう) Popgun |
丸 | まる |
|
丸キロ(まるきろ) Whole kilogram |
御 | み | See Lesson 146 | |
未 | み |
|
未完成 (みかんせい) Incomplete |
明 | みょう |
|
明後日 (みょうごにち) The day after tomorrow |
無 | む |
|
無意味(むいみ) Meaningless |
物 | もの |
|
物悲(ものがな)しい Melancholy |
諸 | もろ |
|
諸刃(もろは) Double-edged |
手 | て |
|
手厚(てあつ)い Cordial 手強(てごわ)い Formidable 手緩(てぬる)い Lenient |
悪 | わる |
|
悪足掻(わるあが)き Useless efforts |
Unlike for nouns, there aren't that many prefixes that attach to verbs. Of the ones that do exist, there are often variants. Below is a chart that illustrates basically all the prefixes you'll see before a verb in Japanese--there's just not that many of them.
Note: あい- from above may also be used with verbs.
Prefix | 仮名 | Meaning(s) | Examples |
打ち | うち |
|
打ち明ける (うちあける) To confide |
押し | おし |
|
押し上げる (おしあげる) To boost |
押っ | おっ |
|
押っつける (おっつける) To force |
掻き | かき |
|
掻き集める (かきあつめる) To scramble |
差し・っ | さし・っ |
|
差し伸べる (さしのべる) To reach out |
すっ | すっ |
|
すっ飛ぶ (すっとぶ) To rush away |
立ち | たち |
|
立ち向かう (たちむかう) To stand up to |
突き・っ・ん | つき・っ・ん |
|
突き刺す (つきさす) To stab |
取り・っ | とり・っ |
|
取り戻す (とりもどす) To recover; get back |
引き・っ・ん | ひき・っ・ん |
|
引き留める (ひきとめる) To keep back |
ぶち・ぶっ・ぶん | ぶち・ぶっ・ぶん |
|
ぶち抜く (ぶちぬく) To break in |
吹っ | ふっ |
|
吹っ飛ぶ (ふっとぶ) To blow off |
罷り | まかり |
|
罷り通る (まかりとおる) To be justified |
With the influx of foreign expressions, so have the amount of foreign prefixes. Below is a list of some of the most commonly seen prefixes for loan words in Japanese.
Prefix | Meaning(s) | Examples |
アンチ | Anti- | アンチテーゼ Antithesis |
インター | Inter- | インターセプト Intercept |
ウルトラ | Ultra- | ウルトラマリン Ultramarine |
エレクトロ | Electro- | エレクトロニクス Electronics |
オート | Auto- | オートショー Auto-show |
グッド | Good | グッドデザイン Good design |
サンタ | Saint | サンタクロース Santa Claus |
スーパー | Super- | スーパーマーケット Supermarket |
セミ | Semi- | セミプロ Semipro |
トリプル | Tri- | トリプルプレー Triple play |
ネオ | Neo- | ネオコン Neo-con |
ノン | Non- | ノンストップ Nonstop |
パン | Pan- | パンアメリカニズム Pan-americanism |
プレ | Pre- | プレオリンピック Pre-olympics |
ポスト | Post- | ポストモダニズム Post-modernism |
マクロ | Macro- | マクロウィルス Macro virus |
マイクロ | Micro- | マイクロチップ Microchip |
マルチ | Multi- | マルチタスキング Multitasking |
ミニ |
Mini- | ミニカー Minicar |
ギガ | Giga- | ギガバイト Gigabyte |
キロ | Kiro- | キログラム Kilogram |
デカ | Deca- | デカグラム Decagram |
デシ | Deci- | デシミリ Decimeters |
テラ | Tera- | テラバイト Terabyte |
ナノ | Nano- | ナノメートル Nanometer |
ピコ | Pico- | ピコメートル Picometer |
フェムト | Femto- | フェムトメートル Femtometer |
ヘクト | Hecto- | ヘクトメートル Hectometer |
The next couple of lessons will be about suffixes.
1. 荒し (あらし) means "troll".
1. 墓荒し
An internet troll
2. 顔 (がお)shows the "face" or "look" of something.
笑い顔 | Smiley face | 得意顔 | Triumphant look | 訳知り顔 | Know-it-all look |
3. 掛かり (がかり) attaches to nouns to show that something is dependent on or resembles something. With verbs it means "with these course of events".
2. 行きがかり上、そうなってしまった。
After going to this course of events, it became so.
3. 一人掛かりでやった仕事だ。
It's only a one-man job.
4.
芝居
掛かりな声
A voice resembling theatre
5.
親掛
かりの
位
。
A position dependent on one's parents.
6. 神がかり的な能力
Exceptional ability
4. 掛け (かけ) attaches to nouns and the 連用形 of verbs. With verbs it shows that something is in the middle of happening/being done. With nouns, it means "rack".
7. タオル掛け
Towel rack
8. 壊れかけ
In the middle of collapsing
5. 掛け (がけ) with nouns means "to put on". With intransitive verbs it shows something is in the middle of doing something. With 一人(ひとり), 二人(ふたり), etc., it shows how many people can sit. With numbers it means "tenths".
9.
襷
掛け
Tucking up sleeves
10. 帰りがけに店に
寄
ってきた。
I came by the store on the way home.
11. 10人掛けのソファを見たところだよ!
I just saw a sofa that could fit 10 people!
12. 定価の6掛けで古本を買いました。
I bought used books 40% off.
13. 7人掛けシート
Seven person seat
Culture Note: In the majority of trains in Japan, seats often sit seven people and three seats separated by doors on both sides of the train is the norm.
6. がし attaches to the 命令形 of verbs to create phrases that push an opinion.
これ見よがし。 | Out of display. | 聞こえよがしに言う。 | Talk at someone. |
7. ~方(かた) → Lesson 81.
8. 柄 (がら) attaches to nouns to show a suitable condition.
14. 土地柄
Local color
15.
時節柄
ご
自愛
下さい。
Please take care of yourself during these times.
16.
商売柄
朝が早い。
The morning is early for the nature of this business.
9. 絡み (がらみ) is used after words expressing age or price to show "about" or "around". And, it's after nouns to show there is a close connection with something.
17.
厚生
がらみの国際的な問題です。
It's an international problem concerning welfare.
18. バッテリーがらみの問題
Problems concerning batteries
19. 1万円がらみの品物だ。 (ほとんど使われていない)
These are goods around 10,000 yen in worth.
10. 刻み (きざみ) is equivalent to "-毎に" and "-置きに" and means "every...".
20. 五センチ刻み。
Every 5 centimeters.
21. 百円刻みに
料金
が上がります。
The fee goes up every 100 yen.
11. きって attaches to nouns and shows what is the most...in something.
22. 彼は
我
が校きっての
秀才
です。
He is the brightest student in our school.
23. 当代きっての名優。
Great actor of our time.
12. 競 (くら) attaches to the 連用形 of verbs to show some sort of contest.
駆けっ競 | Footrace | 睨(にら)め競 | Staring contest |
13. ぐるみ shows that the subject is completely included.
24. 家族ぐるみでその
難問
に取り
組
みました。
The entire family dealt with the difficult problem.
25. 村ぐるみ = 村人が全員で
Forming a crowd
14. くんだり, which comes from the word 下り, attaches to names or words of place to show a far distance from a certain reference point. This is not widely used.
26. 青森くんだりまで行ってしまった。
I ended up going as far as Aomori.
27. こんな田舎くんだりまで、よく来てくださいました。
I'm very grateful that you have come all this way to the country for us.
15. 気 (け) attaches to nouns and the stems of adjectives/verbs to show sensing of a certain condition.
28.
嫌気
がさしてるぜ。
I'm tired of it.
29.
寒気
がする。
To feel chilly.
30.
毒気
に当てられる。
To be overwhelmed.
31.
人気
のない町。
An abandoned town.
16. 子 (こ) shows a child of a particular nature. With either nouns or the 連用形 of verbs, it shows a person of a certain occupation. When attached to a place, 子 shows birthplace. This suffix also helps create female names.
32. 明治っ子
A person of the Meiji Period
33. 恵美子
Emiko
34. 彼は売れっ子の作家ですね。
He's a popular writer, isn't he?
17. -っこ is a colloquial version of すること. It's often attached to verbs in the potential form and then followed by ない to explosively show incapability. It may also show competition with the 連用形 of verbs, smallness with onomatopoeia, and make slang variants out of common nouns.
35. あいつには分かりっこないな。
He'll never understand.
36. にゃんこ
Kitty cat
37.
慣
れっこになる。
To become used to.
38. 僕は
駆
けっこで一番になった。
I got first in a race.
39.
睨
めっこしよう!
Let's have a staring contest!
40. ほら、台風が学校をぺしゃんこにしたんだ。
Look, the typhoon leveled the school!
41. 彼には日本語が話せっこない。
He'll never be able to speak Japanese.
42. 歌えっこない!
I can't sing!
43. お腹がマジでぺしゃんこだぞ。
I'm so hungry!
Sentence Note: The last sentence would be most likely used by someone really thin.
Corner | 隅 → 隅っこ | Edge | 端 → 端っこ | Root 根 → 根っこ |
18. ごかし = one is actually planning one's own interests while pretending the other.
44. おためごかし
Self-aggrandizement under pretense of aiding another
45. 親切ごかし
Acting nice while actually playing the devil's advocate.
19. -越し means "over" and may be used in a sense of doing something over some sort of distance such as one's shoulders or in a time sense where it shows a condition continuing throughout a given time period.
46. 窓越しに話しかける。
To talk out the window.
47.
肩越
しに
覗
き
込
む。
To look over one's shoulders.
48. 私たちは10年{越し・来}の付き合いです。
We've known each other for over 10 years.
20. ごっこ = game of mimicry.
鬼ごっこ | Tag | 電車ごっこ | Make-believe train | お医者さんごっこ | Playing doctor |
21. ごと attaches to nouns showing inclusion in "all".
49. リンゴを
皮
ごと食べる。
Eat the apple with all of the skin.
50.
服
ごと放り込む。
To shovel off all clothes.
51.
枷
ごと
果
てない空へただ飛び立つ。
All of the shackles will just fly away into the endless sky.
22. 沙汰(ざた) is often after nouns and the 連用形 to mean "affair" or "gossip".
色恋沙汰 | Love affair | 取り沙汰 | Current gossip | 警察沙汰 | Police case |
23. 様(ざま) can attach to nouns to show a certain direction. After the 連用形 of a verb, it either shows the course of a condition or action or give a sense of "just as...".
52.
卑怯
な生き様
A cowardly way of living
53. 授業が続け様に3つあります。
I have three classes back to back.
54.
逆
さまの夢へと堕ちる。 (Unvoiced example)
To fall in a backwards dream.
55.
木々
が風で
横様
に
倒
れた。
The trees fell down sideways by the wind.
Reading Note: 横様 = よこざま・よこさま
56.
振
り
向
き
様
に彼をにらみつけた。
I turned and glared at him.
57.
「あっ。
小蝶
さんが帰る、小蝶さんが帰る」
と、
金彌
はぱっと起き上がって、
喜
びいっぱい
叫
びながら部屋を飛び出しざま、
「小蝶さん」
賑
かな笑い声に続いて、
雨、雨、降れ降れ
母さんが
蛇
の
目
でお迎え
うれしいな
ピッチピッチ
チャップチャップ
ランランラン
陽気
に調子づいた
幼
い歌声が、玄関の方へ遠ざかって行った。
"Ah! Kocho-san's coming home, Kocho-san's coming home!", Kanami yelled full of joy as she sprang up, and just as she dashed out of the room yelling "Ko-chan", she continued with a lively laughter singing:
Rain fall, rain fall!
Mom has come to see me with her umbrella
How happy am I!
Splishy splishy splashy splashy
Lalala
Her warm, young, melodious singing voice went all the water to the entrance.
From 童謡 by 川端康成.
Passage Note: That song is the first part of a famous 童謡 (children's song) called あめふり. The onomatopoeia is rather unique to the song itself, so it is rather difficult to adequately translate them into English.
24. しな attaches to the 連用形 of verbs to mean "at time of doing...".
58. 寝しなに酒を飲むと、
二日酔
いがかかる。
If you drink sake when you're going to sleep, you'll get a hangover.
59. 出しなに電話がかかってきた。
I got a call on my phone when I was leaving.
60. 泣きしなに転んでしまった。
I fell at the time I was crying.
61. 隣りの男は横浜を出しなに薄目をあけただけで、だらしなく居眠り続けた。
The man right by just halfway opened his eyes leaving Yokohama, and he continued to carelessly doze.
From 山の音 by 川端康成.
25. 凌ぎ(しのぎ)= "to tide over" and is idiomatic in translation. It follows nominal phrases.
62.
退屈
しのぎ
To kill time
63. その場しのぎの手段で切り抜ける。
To get over at half measures.
After this lesson, we will transition to native endings that result in non-nominal phrases.
26. ~ 好 き follows nouns to describe people that like a certain think a lot or a character that is liked a lot by people.
1. 夫は外出好きです。
My husband likes to go out.
2. 「あの人は、よく外国旅行をしますね」「よほど
冒険好
きなんでしょう」
"That person often travels overseas" "He must be quite adventurous"
3. 人好きの
性質
An amiable personality
27. ~ずじまい means that something wasn't done and something accidentally ended up happening--しないで終わってしまった. As you can see, it comes from the combination of the old negative auxiliary ず and 終い (end) voiced.
4. 結局彼と会わずじまいだった。
I ended up not meeting with him.
28. ~尽く attaches to nouns and the stems of adjectives. It either shows that something relies entirely on something, something has the sole purpose of something, or what something is based off of. Most of the words used with this are uncommon and are becoming restricted to formal writing.
5. 納得ずくで解約する。 (経済)
To dissolve with mutual consent.
6. 腕ずくで強い相手を倒す。
To beat a strong enemy by might.
7a. 算盤
ずくで戦う。
7b. 計算ずくで戦う。 (より自然)
To fight calculatively.
8. 欲得
ずくで引き受けた仕事ではない。
This is not a job I took on just for gain.
9. 欲得ずくの結婚をする。
To marry for the money.
10. 力ずくで家に押し入る。
To enter a house by force.
11. 腕ずくで捩じ伏せる。
To hold down someone's arms with brute force.
29. ~ 攻 め means "offense/attack" and attaches to nouns to show bombardment. In doing so, 攻め becomes voiced as ぜめ.
12. 守りから攻めに転じる一手は賢いのか。
Is switching to the offensive from the defensive a wise move?
13. 次の一手で守りから攻めに転じる!
I'll switch to offensive from defensive with this next move!
14.
兵糧攻
めで敵を
降伏
させる。
To force surrender with starvation.
15. 質問攻めにする。
To bombard with questions.
16. 我々は広告攻めに
遭
っている。
We are bombarded with advertisements.
17. 誰もが毎日電子メールに{やられています・
辟易
しています}。
Everyone is being overwhelmed by e-mails every day.
30. ~だてら shows that something is unfitting of normal quality. This is old-fashioned and essentially not used.
18. 女だてらってよく言われますが、男だてらって言いませんね。
"Unladylike" is used frequently, but we don't say "unmanly-like".
19. 親だてらにいらぬ世話を焼く。(古い言い方)
To meddle unlike that of a parent.
31. ~ 垂 れ is a pejorative equivalent to "-ass" and attaches to nouns or adjectives.
20. しみったれ
Stingy a**.
21. 馬鹿垂れ
Dumba**
22. くそったれ
S%*#head
32. ~付(つ・づ)け may either be attached to the 連用形 of a verb to show what one always does or attached to a day as "づけ" to show a schedule.
23. こちらは行きつけの図書館です。
This is the library that I always go to.
24. 六日
付
けの
発令
Proclamation for the sixth
25. 掛
かり
付
けの医者
Family doctor
33. ~ 詰 め shows that an action or condition is continuing. Attach to the 連用形 of verbs.
26. 歩き詰めでくたくただ。
I was exhausted due to continuous walking.
27. 立ち詰めで働いていた。
I have been working while continuing to stand up.
34. ~ 連 れ shows a company of people.
28. 旅の道連れ
A traveling companion.
29. 三人連れでいればいい。
It's good to be in groups of threes.
30. 家族連れでハイキングに行く。
To go hiking with one's family in tow.
35. ~手 is attached to the 連用形 of verbs and denotes the action doer.
31. あいつはくどい話し手だな。
He's a windy speaker, isn't he?
32. 彼はいつも
注意深
い聞き手です。
He is always an alert listener.
33. 書き手
Writer
36. ~
通
し, like ~詰め, shows that something continues as such. It too attaches to the 連用形 of verbs.
34. 雪は
夜通
し降り続いた。
It snowed all night long.
35. 立ち通しでした。
I was kept standing.
37. ~ 通 り follows nouns meaning "Street/Avenue" or "in accordance with". Do not confuse with ~通し.
36. 彼女の住所はウェスト・パーク通り6番です。
Her address is 6 West Park Street.
37. サンセット大通り
Sunset Boulevard
38. 自分の思い通りにする。
To have it one's own way.
39. 求刑
の
結果
だが、
予想通
りだ。
These are the results of the prosecution; it was just as expected.
40. 概
ね
平常通
りです。
Things are basically just as normal.
38. ~並み means "average/ordinary" As a suffix, it may show a line of similar things such as houses, everything in the same condition, or something of a same level or kind.
41. ウィキペディアはブリタニカ並みに正確だと思います。
I think that Wikipedia is as accurate as Britannica.
42. 軒並
みが
壊滅
した。
The row of houses were completely destroyed.
43. 世間並み
Ordinary
44. 山並み(の
輪郭
)が見える。
To be able to see the outline of the row of mountains.
45. 七月並みの気温です。
This is average July temperatures.
46. この種の顔写真は、誰でもひとしなみに指名手配犯のように見せてしまう。
This kind of face photo ends up showing anyone equally like a wanted criminal.
From 火車 by 宮部みゆき.
Word Note: ひとしなみ, spelled in 漢字 as 等し並, is a 形容動詞 made with the combination of 並み and the stem of 等しい
39. ~抜く as a suffix in the form ~抜き means "without".
47. 塩抜きのポテトチップを買えるかな。
I wonder if you can buy potato chips without salt.
48. 砂糖抜きでお願いします。
Without sugar please.
49. 昼飯抜きで仕事をすると、健康を
損
なってしまう。
If you work without lunch, you'll end up losing your health.
50.
染
み
抜
きをする。
To remove stains.
40. ~ 栄 え attaches to the 連用形 of verbs and is used to show a heard or shown advantage. It is limited to the verbs 見る and 聞く.
51. 音楽は聞き栄えがしなかった。
The music was not pleasing to the ears.
52. 彼女は一向
に見栄えがしないよ。
She's not anything to look at at all.
53. あのドレスは見栄えがしました。
That dress was much to look at.
41. ~ 端 attaches to the 連用形 of verbs and means "about to start". Its usage is very limited. The first example is a very common phrase with it, but other than that, it is extremely rare. Use on with things you find it used with.
54. 出端
Moment of departure
55. 寝入
りばなに弟が泣き出した。
My little brother began to cry as I was falling asleep.
42. ~っ 放 し comes from 放す meaning "to unchain". ~っ放し strengthens this meaning by showing how "you leave something...". It's most associated with frequent careless forgetting.
56. テレビをつけっぱなしにするな!
Don't leave the TV on!
57. 私は昨夜テレビをつけっぱなしにして寝てしまった。
Last night I fell asleep leaving the television on.
58. 部屋を出るときは
電灯
をつけっぱなしにしないようにしてくださいね。
Try not to leave the lights on when you leave the room, OK?
43. ~ 張 り attaches to personal nouns and means "reminiscent of".
59. 雷電張
りの
空模様
だった。
It was weather reminiscent of thunder and lightning.
60. セザンヌ張りの
風景画
。
Landscape paintings reminiscent of Cezanne.
61. シェイクスピア張りの文体。
Writing style reminiscent of Shakespeare.
44. ~ 日 means day. It is sometimes unvoiced.
収集日 | しゅうしゅうび | Collection day | 締切日 | しめきりび | Closing day |
忌み日 | いみび | Unlucky day (astrology) | 冬日 | ふゆび | Winter day |
春日 | はるひ・はるび | Spring day | 誕生日 | たんじょうび | Birthday |
45. ~ 辺 is attached to geographical nouns to mean "-side".
62. 水辺に
並
んでいる町。
Towns lining the waterside.
63. 海辺で休日を過ごしたよ。
I spent the holiday at the seaside.
64.
嵐
がその
大船
を岸辺へと押しやった。
The storm impelled the big ship to the shoreline.
65. 山辺
Mountainside
Historical Note: It's interesting to note that some scholars believe this ending is actually an ancient borrowing from Ainu.
46. ~っぺ is used after names to show familiarity, but it can also be used in a hurtful way. It all depends on context. If you're called a 田舎っぺ, that's not a nice thing. These sorts of nuances don't translate well into English, so keep in mind what this stands for.
66. 花っぺ (Nickname for Hanako)
Hana-ppe
67. 太郎っぺ
Taro
47. ~(っ)ぽ(っ)ち attaches to demonstrative pronouns or numbers meaning "merely but". This ending is very casual, which explains the speech styles of the example sentences.
68. 1ドルぽっちでは買えねー。(Casual; vulgar)
I can't buy anything with just a dollar.
69. これっぽっちでは足りないもんだ。
This is just merely lacking.
48. ~ 前 attaches to words of number or person to show portion or suitable amount. This suffix oddly does not follow any exception to any counter rules.
70. 一人前になる。
To come to age.
71. 二人前を
平
らげる。
To consume food enough for two people.
49. ~向け: See Lesson 151.
50. ~目 has three usages. It is seen in the pattern ”Counter phrase + 目” to create ordinal expressions (#th). You also see it after the 連用形 of verbs to show the point or place of partition in something. The last usage is just as important. In its third usage it is after either after the stem of adjectives or the 連用形 of verbs to show tendency/disposition/degree. Of course, given that there are two usages when after the 連用形 of verbs, you will have to consider the meaning of the verbs themselves to differentiate the usages.
72. 今年の15冊目を読みきりました。
I've completely read through my 15th book of the year.
73. このレストランでまったく切れ目のない列ができています。
There is a line with no gaps at all.
74. 縫
い目が
綻
びる。
For seams to split.
76. 袂はやや長めであった。
(Her) sleeves were quite lengthy.
From 不死 by 川端康成.
77. 若い女の答えはあいまいだったが、白粉の濃いめの顔を赤らめもしないで、もううしろを見せるとフォウムへ出て行った。
The young woman's answer was vague, but she left to the platform and had already shown her backside doing so without ever having her strongly powdered face blush.
From 山の音 by 川端康成.
Exception Note: 濃い + 目 should result in 濃目, but this is very rare. Instead, 濃い目 is used.
51. ~もの, either 物 for things or 者 for people, attaches to the stem of nouns to show things or people "to...".
78. 動物に食べ物を与えないでくださいませんか。
Could you please not give food to the animals?
79. 何か飲み物がほしい。
I want something to drink.
80. 乗り物に
酔
う。
To have travel sickness.
81. この本はためになる読み物です。
This book is good reading.
82. 生き物一つもいない。
There is not a living thing.
83. 壊れ物!
Fragile objects!
84. 彼女は本当に働き者だよ。
She is a really hard worker.
85. 彼はまったく
怠
け者だぞ。
He is completely lazy.
86. 聞き物はない。
To not have something worth listening to.
52. ~ 屋 may be added to a type of trade to show a kind of shop. In the same vein, it may also be the end of an alias. As an extension of showing one's trade, it can pinpoint people with certain dispositions like being sarcastic, shy, or what not. In this last case, it is often with the auxiliary ~がる.
電気屋 | Electric store | 恥ずかしがり屋 | Shy person |
皮肉屋 | Sarcastic person | 鈴の屋 | Suzunoya (alias) |
技術屋 | Engineer | 寿司屋 | Sushi bar |
53. ~や is a suffix that attaches to nouns of person to show intimacy.
87. じいや
Gramps
88. 坊やが天使のような表情を持った。
The little boy possessed an angelic expression.
89. ねえや
Sis'
30. 尽く (ずく) attaches to nouns and the stems of adjectives. It either shows that something relies entirely on something, something has the sole purpose of something, or what something is based off of.
納得ずく
With mutual consent
腕尽くで相手をぶっ倒す。
To beat an enemy by might.
欲得ずくで付き合う。
To go steady with having a mercenary attitude.
力ずくで押し入らない方がよほどよい。
It is much better to not enter by force.
31. 尽くめ (ずくめ) → Lesson 109
32. 達 (たち) → Lesson 5
33. だてら shows that something is unfitting of normal quality.
女だてら
Unladylike
親だてらにいらぬ世話を焼く。
To meddle unlike that of a parent.
34. だらけ → Lesson 109
35. 垂れ (たれ) is a pejorative equivalent to "-ass" and attaches to nouns or adjectives.
しみったれ
Stingy a**.
馬鹿垂れ
Dumba**
クソッタレ
S%*#head
36. ちゃん → Lesson 70
37. 付け (つけ・づけ) may either be attached to the 連用形 of a verb to show what one always does or attached to a day as "-づけ" to show a schedule.
行きつけの図書館はこちらです。
This is the library that I always go to.
六日付(づ)けの発令。
Proclamation for the sixth.
掛かり付(つ)けの医者。
The family doctor.
38. 詰め (づめ) shows that an action or condition is continuing and attaches to the 連用形 of verbs.
歩き詰めでくたくただ。
I was exhausted due to continuous walking.
立ち詰めで働いていた。
I have been working while continuing to stand up.
39. 連れ (づれ) shows a company of people.
旅の道連れ
A traveling companion.
三人連れでいればいい。
It's good to be in groups of threes.
家族連れでハイキングに行く。
To go hiking with one's family in tow.
40. 手 (て) is attached to the 連用形 of verbs and denotes the action doer.
くどい話し手だな。
He's a windy speaker, isn't he?
彼はいつも注意深い聞き手です。
He is always an alert listener.
書き手
Writer
42. 通り (どおり) follows nouns and either means "Street/Avenue" or "following/in accordance with".
彼女の住所はウェスト・パーク通り6番です。
Her address is 6 West Park Street.
サンセット大通り
Sunset Boulevard
自分の思い通りにする。
To have it one's own way.
43. 殿 (どの) → Lesson 70
44. 共 (ども) → Lesson 70
45. 栄え (ばえ) attaches to the 連用形 of verbs and is used to show a heard or shown advantage. It is limited to the verbs 見る and 聞く. Below are some examples.
音楽は聞き栄えがしなかった。
The music was not pleasing to the ears.
一向に見栄えがしないよ。
She's not anything to look at at all.
あのドレスは見栄えがしました。
That dress was much to look at.
46. 端 (ばな) attaches to the 連用形 of verbs and means "about to start".
出端
Moment of departure
寝入りばなに弟が泣き出した。
My little brother began to cry as I was falling asleep.
47. 張り (ばり) attaches to personal nouns and means "reminiscent of".
雷電張りの空模様だった。
It was weather reminiscent of thunder and lightning.
セザンヌ張りの風景画。
Landscape paintings reminiscent of Cezanne.
シェイクスピア張りの文体。
Writing style reminiscent of Shakespeare.
48. 辺 (べ) is attached to geographical nouns to mean "-side".
水辺に並んでいる町。
Towns lining the waterside.
海辺で休日を過ごしたよ。
I spent the holiday at the seaside.
水辺に欸乃(あいだい)を聞く。
To hear a fisherman's song on the waterside.
嵐(あらし)がその大船を岸辺へと押しやった。
The storm impelled the big ship to the shoreline.
49. (っ)ぽ(っ)ち attaches to demonstrative pronouns or numbers meaning "merely but".
1ドルぽっちでは買えねー。
I can't buy anything with just a dollar.
これっぽっちでは足りないもんだ。
This is just merely lacking.
50. 前 (まえ) attaches to words of number or person to show portion or suitable amount. This suffix oddly does not follow any exception to any counter rules.
一人前になる。
To come to age.
二人前を平らげる。
To consume food enough for two people.
51. み → Lesson 112
52. みどろ is a less common alternative to the suffix -まみれ to show things being covered in something.
血みどろの遺体
A bloody corpse
汗みどろの労働者
A sweat covered laborer
53. -もの, either 物 for things or 者 for people, attaches to the stem of nouns to show things or people "to...".
動物に食べ物を与えないでくださいませんか。
Could you please not give food to the animals.
何か飲み物がほしい。
I want something to drink.
着物
Clothes; kimono
銀座へ買い物に行った。
I went shopping in Ginza.
クリスマスの贈り物
Christmas presents
乗り物に酔(よ)う。
To have travel sickness.
この本はためになる読み物です。
This book is good reading.
生き物一つもいない。
There is not a living thing.
建物はでっかいよ!
The building is huge!
壊れ物!
Fragile objects!
彼女は本当に働き者だよ。
She is a really hard worker.
まったく怠け者だぞ。
He is completely lazy.
聞き物はない。
To not have something worth listening to.
54. 屋 (や)may be added to a type of trade to show a kind of shop, describe a certain type of person often with -がる, or show an alias name.
鈴の屋
Suzunoya (alias)
皮肉屋
Sarcastic person
技術屋
Engineer
地上げ屋
Land shark/speculator
電気屋
Electric appliance store; electrician
55. や is a suffix that attaches to nouns of person to show intimacy.
ばあや
Ma-ma
じいや
Gramps
坊やが天使のような表情を持った。
The little boy possessed an angelic expression.
ねえや
Sis'
56. 等(ら) → Lesson 5
Additional Suffixes to be Seen in Lesson 107~109
The suffixes -勝(が)ち, -っ放(ぱな)し, -っこ, -放題, -がてら, -方(かた), -並(な)み, -だらけ, -まみれ, -尽(ず)くめ, -めく, -気(げ), and -気味(ぎみ) are discussed in those lessons.
30. 尽く (ずく) attaches to nouns and the stems of adjectives. It either shows that something relies entirely on something, something has the sole purpose of something, or what something is based off of.
納得ずく
With mutual consent
腕尽くで相手をぶっ倒す。
To beat an enemy by might.
欲得ずくで付き合う。
To go steady with having a mercenary attitude.
力ずくで押し入らない方がよほどよい。
It is much better to not enter by force.
31. 尽くめ (ずくめ) → Lesson 109
32. 達 (たち) → Lesson 5
33. だてら shows that something is unfitting of normal quality.
女だてら
Unladylike
親だてらにいらぬ世話を焼く。
To meddle unlike that of a parent.
34. だらけ → Lesson 109
35. 垂れ (たれ) is a pejorative equivalent to "-ass" and attaches to nouns or adjectives.
しみったれ
Stingy a**.
馬鹿垂れ
Dumba**
クソッタレ
S%*#head
36. ちゃん → Lesson 70
37. 付け (つけ・づけ) may either be attached to the 連用形 of a verb to show what one always does or attached to a day as "-づけ" to show a schedule.
行きつけの図書館はこちらです。
This is the library that I always go to.
六日付(づ)けの発令。
Proclamation for the sixth.
掛かり付(つ)けの医者。
The family doctor.
38. 詰め (づめ) shows that an action or condition is continuing and attaches to the 連用形 of verbs.
歩き詰めでくたくただ。
I was exhausted due to continuous walking.
立ち詰めで働いていた。
I have been working while continuing to stand up.
39. 連れ (づれ) shows a company of people.
旅の道連れ
A traveling companion.
三人連れでいればいい。
It's good to be in groups of threes.
家族連れでハイキングに行く。
To go hiking with one's family in tow.
40. 手 (て) is attached to the 連用形 of verbs and denotes the action doer.
くどい話し手だな。
He's a windy speaker, isn't he?
彼はいつも注意深い聞き手です。
He is always an alert listener.
書き手
Writer
42. 通り (どおり) follows nouns and either means "Street/Avenue" or "following/in accordance with".
彼女の住所はウェスト・パーク通り6番です。
Her address is 6 West Park Street.
サンセット大通り
Sunset Boulevard
自分の思い通りにする。
To have it one's own way.
43. 殿 (どの) → Lesson 70
44. 共 (ども) → Lesson 70
45. 栄え (ばえ) attaches to the 連用形 of verbs and is used to show a heard or shown advantage. It is limited to the verbs 見る and 聞く. Below are some examples.
音楽は聞き栄えがしなかった。
The music was not pleasing to the ears.
一向に見栄えがしないよ。
She's not anything to look at at all.
あのドレスは見栄えがしました。
That dress was much to look at.
46. 端 (ばな) attaches to the 連用形 of verbs and means "about to start".
出端
Moment of departure
寝入りばなに弟が泣き出した。
My little brother began to cry as I was falling asleep.
47. 張り (ばり) attaches to personal nouns and means "reminiscent of".
雷電張りの空模様だった。
It was weather reminiscent of thunder and lightning.
セザンヌ張りの風景画。
Landscape paintings reminiscent of Cezanne.
シェイクスピア張りの文体。
Writing style reminiscent of Shakespeare.
48. 辺 (べ) is attached to geographical nouns to mean "-side".
水辺に並んでいる町。
Towns lining the waterside.
海辺で休日を過ごしたよ。
I spent the holiday at the seaside.
水辺に欸乃(あいだい)を聞く。
To hear a fisherman's song on the waterside.
嵐(あらし)がその大船を岸辺へと押しやった。
The storm impelled the big ship to the shoreline.
49. (っ)ぽ(っ)ち attaches to demonstrative pronouns or numbers meaning "merely but".
1ドルぽっちでは買えねー。
I can't buy anything with just a dollar.
これっぽっちでは足りないもんだ。
This is just merely lacking.
50. 前 (まえ) attaches to words of number or person to show portion or suitable amount. This suffix oddly does not follow any exception to any counter rules.
一人前になる。
To come to age.
二人前を平らげる。
To consume food enough for two people.
51. み → Lesson 112
52. みどろ is a less common alternative to the suffix -まみれ to show things being covered in something.
血みどろの遺体
A bloody corpse
汗みどろの労働者
A sweat covered laborer
53. -もの, either 物 for things or 者 for people, attaches to the stem of nouns to show things or people "to...".
動物に食べ物を与えないでくださいませんか。
Could you please not give food to the animals.
何か飲み物がほしい。
I want something to drink.
着物
Clothes; kimono
銀座へ買い物に行った。
I went shopping in Ginza.
クリスマスの贈り物
Christmas presents
乗り物に酔(よ)う。
To have travel sickness.
この本はためになる読み物です。
This book is good reading.
生き物一つもいない。
There is not a living thing.
建物はでっかいよ!
The building is huge!
壊れ物!
Fragile objects!
彼女は本当に働き者だよ。
She is a really hard worker.
まったく怠け者だぞ。
He is completely lazy.
聞き物はない。
To not have something worth listening to.
54. 屋 (や)may be added to a type of trade to show a kind of shop, describe a certain type of person often with -がる, or show an alias name.
鈴の屋
Suzunoya (alias)
皮肉屋
Sarcastic person
技術屋
Engineer
地上げ屋
Land shark/speculator
電気屋
Electric appliance store; electrician
55. や is a suffix that attaches to nouns of person to show intimacy.
ばあや
Ma-ma
じいや
Gramps
坊やが天使のような表情を持った。
The little boy possessed an angelic expression.
ねえや
Sis'
56. 等(ら) → Lesson 5
Additional Suffixes to be Seen in Lesson 107~109
The suffixes -勝(が)ち, -っ放(ぱな)し, -っこ, -放題, -がてら, -方(かた), -並(な)み, -だらけ, -まみれ, -尽(ず)くめ, -めく, -気(げ), and -気味(ぎみ) are discussed in those lessons.
30. 尽く (ずく) attaches to nouns and the stems of adjectives. It either shows that something relies entirely on something, something has the sole purpose of something, or what something is based off of.
納得ずく
With mutual consent
腕尽くで相手をぶっ倒す。
To beat an enemy by might.
欲得ずくで付き合う。
To go steady with having a mercenary attitude.
力ずくで押し入らない方がよほどよい。
It is much better to not enter by force.
31. 尽くめ (ずくめ) → Lesson 109
32. 達 (たち) → Lesson 5
33. だてら shows that something is unfitting of normal quality.
女だてら
Unladylike
親だてらにいらぬ世話を焼く。
To meddle unlike that of a parent.
34. だらけ → Lesson 109
35. 垂れ (たれ) is a pejorative equivalent to "-ass" and attaches to nouns or adjectives.
しみったれ
Stingy a**.
馬鹿垂れ
Dumba**
クソッタレ
S%*#head
36. ちゃん → Lesson 70
37. 付け (つけ・づけ) may either be attached to the 連用形 of a verb to show what one always does or attached to a day as "-づけ" to show a schedule.
行きつけの図書館はこちらです。
This is the library that I always go to.
六日付(づ)けの発令。
Proclamation for the sixth.
掛かり付(つ)けの医者。
The family doctor.
38. 詰め (づめ) shows that an action or condition is continuing and attaches to the 連用形 of verbs.
歩き詰めでくたくただ。
I was exhausted due to continuous walking.
立ち詰めで働いていた。
I have been working while continuing to stand up.
39. 連れ (づれ) shows a company of people.
旅の道連れ
A traveling companion.
三人連れでいればいい。
It's good to be in groups of threes.
家族連れでハイキングに行く。
To go hiking with one's family in tow.
40. 手 (て) is attached to the 連用形 of verbs and denotes the action doer.
くどい話し手だな。
He's a windy speaker, isn't he?
彼はいつも注意深い聞き手です。
He is always an alert listener.
書き手
Writer
42. 通り (どおり) follows nouns and either means "Street/Avenue" or "following/in accordance with".
彼女の住所はウェスト・パーク通り6番です。
Her address is 6 West Park Street.
サンセット大通り
Sunset Boulevard
自分の思い通りにする。
To have it one's own way.
43. 殿 (どの) → Lesson 70
44. 共 (ども) → Lesson 70
45. 栄え (ばえ) attaches to the 連用形 of verbs and is used to show a heard or shown advantage. It is limited to the verbs 見る and 聞く. Below are some examples.
音楽は聞き栄えがしなかった。
The music was not pleasing to the ears.
一向に見栄えがしないよ。
She's not anything to look at at all.
あのドレスは見栄えがしました。
That dress was much to look at.
46. 端 (ばな) attaches to the 連用形 of verbs and means "about to start".
出端
Moment of departure
寝入りばなに弟が泣き出した。
My little brother began to cry as I was falling asleep.
47. 張り (ばり) attaches to personal nouns and means "reminiscent of".
雷電張りの空模様だった。
It was weather reminiscent of thunder and lightning.
セザンヌ張りの風景画。
Landscape paintings reminiscent of Cezanne.
シェイクスピア張りの文体。
Writing style reminiscent of Shakespeare.
48. 辺 (べ) is attached to geographical nouns to mean "-side".
水辺に並んでいる町。
Towns lining the waterside.
海辺で休日を過ごしたよ。
I spent the holiday at the seaside.
水辺に欸乃(あいだい)を聞く。
To hear a fisherman's song on the waterside.
嵐(あらし)がその大船を岸辺へと押しやった。
The storm impelled the big ship to the shoreline.
49. (っ)ぽ(っ)ち attaches to demonstrative pronouns or numbers meaning "merely but".
1ドルぽっちでは買えねー。
I can't buy anything with just a dollar.
これっぽっちでは足りないもんだ。
This is just merely lacking.
50. 前 (まえ) attaches to words of number or person to show portion or suitable amount. This suffix oddly does not follow any exception to any counter rules.
一人前になる。
To come to age.
二人前を平らげる。
To consume food enough for two people.
51. み → Lesson 112
52. みどろ is a less common alternative to the suffix -まみれ to show things being covered in something.
血みどろの遺体
A bloody corpse
汗みどろの労働者
A sweat covered laborer
53. -もの, either 物 for things or 者 for people, attaches to the stem of nouns to show things or people "to...".
動物に食べ物を与えないでくださいませんか。
Could you please not give food to the animals.
何か飲み物がほしい。
I want something to drink.
着物
Clothes; kimono
銀座へ買い物に行った。
I went shopping in Ginza.
クリスマスの贈り物
Christmas presents
乗り物に酔(よ)う。
To have travel sickness.
この本はためになる読み物です。
This book is good reading.
生き物一つもいない。
There is not a living thing.
建物はでっかいよ!
The building is huge!
壊れ物!
Fragile objects!
彼女は本当に働き者だよ。
She is a really hard worker.
まったく怠け者だぞ。
He is completely lazy.
聞き物はない。
To not have something worth listening to.
54. 屋 (や)may be added to a type of trade to show a kind of shop, describe a certain type of person often with -がる, or show an alias name.
鈴の屋
Suzunoya (alias)
皮肉屋
Sarcastic person
技術屋
Engineer
地上げ屋
Land shark/speculator
電気屋
Electric appliance store; electrician
55. や is a suffix that attaches to nouns of person to show intimacy.
ばあや
Ma-ma
じいや
Gramps
坊やが天使のような表情を持った。
The little boy possessed an angelic expression.
ねえや
Sis'
56. 等(ら) → Lesson 5
Additional Suffixes to be Seen in Lesson 107~109
The suffixes -勝(が)ち, -っ放(ぱな)し, -っこ, -放題, -がてら, -方(かた), -並(な)み, -だらけ, -まみれ, -尽(ず)くめ, -めく, -気(げ), and -気味(ぎみ) are discussed in those lessons.
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Next Lesson → 第104課: Native Suffixes II: Adjectival and Adverbial
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Next Lesson → 第104課: Native Suffixes II: Adjectival and Adverbial
~勝ち: A 形容動詞 conjugating suffix that shows that "something is prone to happen". Often with a negative tone, it's associated with bad/unwanted tendencies. Though it does have 漢字, it is almost always written in ひらがな.
1. 彼女の小説は退屈になりがちだ。
Her novels tend to become boring.
2. 彼は{
怠惰
に・怠けて}走りがちだ。
He tends to laziness.
3. 学生にありがちな間違いじゃない(か)?
Isn't that an error tended by students?
4. あいつは職務を
怠
りがちだ。
That guy tends to neglect his duties.
A similar phrase is ともすると meaning "apt to". It may also be seen as ともすれば.
5. 不注意な政治家はともすると間違いを犯したことにさえ気づかないでしょう。
A careless politician is apt to not even be aware that he has made a mistake.
6. ともすれば怠けぐせが出る。
To be apt to have a lazy tendency.
~がましい: attaches to nouns or a verb's 連用形 to show a certain tendency felt vividly.
7. 婚礼の晴れがましい場に臨む。
To attend at a grand wedding ceremony place.
8. 差し出がましいようですが...
I hope it is not too presumptuous of me...
9. おこがましい自称
An impudent purport
10.
恨
みがましい
Reproachful
11. 言い訳がましい。
Sounds like an excuse.
12. 校長はとても押し付けがましいですね。
The principal is very pushy, isn't he?
13. 恩着せがましいことを言うな。
Don't say such condescending things.
~がわしい: shows that something or an action has a certain tendency. It is quite rare.
14.
濫
りがわしい話じゃないか。
Isn't that such a morally corrupt argument?
~くさい: attaches to nominal phrases or the stem of adjectives to either show that something has a particular smell or a certain feeling to it.
15. 古臭いな!
That's old-fashioned!
16. 彼は酷
くニンニク臭かった。
He smelled like garlic badly.
17. ガス臭いところだね。
This is a gassy smelling place isn't it?
18.
陰気
臭い小説
A gloomy novel
~ぐましい: shows a condition that is starting to appear that attaches to nouns. It is basically exclusive to the noun 涙 "tear".
19. 涙ぐましい努力をしよう。
Let's make a painstaking effort to do this.
~こい: attaches to nouns and either shows that there is a lot of something included or that a certain nature or situation is extreme. It is often accompanied with a 促音.
20. 脂っこいものを食べない方がいいですよ。
It's best not to eat fatty foods.
21. 彼は本当にしつこい要求をしてばかりいるセールスマンです。
He is salesman that really just makes persistent demands.
22. このシロップは粘っこすぎる。
This syrup is too sticky.
~たらしい: attaches to nouns and the stems of adjectives to give a strong sense of displeasure. A 促音 is often present when used.
23. 憎たらしそうにすんな。
Don't be hateful.
24. 嫌みったらしい文句
A very obscene phrase
25. 長たらしい演説だった。
It was a lengthy speech.
~ぼったい: attaches to adjective stems or 連用形 of verbs. Something is quite so.
26. 寝不足で
瞼
が本間で
腫
れぼったいさ。
My eyes are like really puffed up from lack of sleep.
27. 厚ぼったい唇あるね。
You have some thick lips don't you?
~めかしい: "something looks like...". Attached to nouns and adjective stems.
28. 予言めかしい。
Sounds like a prediction.
29. 艶かしい声
An amorous voice
30. 古めかしい服装を着る。
To wear old-fashioned clothes.
~か(な)・~やか(な)・~らか(な): Attach to make adjectives that show a nature. There is a lot of variation as to what gets these and what doesn't. For instance, though 軽 やか (non-serious) is a standard example, the forms 軽らか and 軽ろか (much rarer) show up in literature.
31. 仄かな光
Dim light
32. それは定かな事実ではない。
That is not a definite fact.
33. 老人にお辞儀を
慎
ましやかにすべきだ。
You should bow reservedly to the elderly.
34. 静かな川の流れが美しい。
The gentle water flow is beautiful.
35. しめやかな
葬儀
を行う。
To hold a solemn funeral service.
36. 清らかな心身
Pure body and mind
37. 晴れやかで生気がみなぎった顔。
A face bright and full of life.
38. 大らかな性格を持つ。
To have a broad-minded nature.
39. 彼女は高らかに歌い続けた。
She continued to sing her heart out.
40.海は
穏
やかです。
The sea is calm.
41a. 華やかな装い
41b. 派手やかな装い (ちょっと古風)
Gorgeous outfit/apparel
42.
約
やかな文章
A concise composition
43. その目は再び若若しくかがやき、その
頰
には
匂
いやかなためらうような
紅
いが
射
した。
Those eyes youthfully glistened and lustrous rouge, as if to hesitant, shined on her cheeks.
From
軽王子
と
衣通姫
by 三島由紀夫.
44. 川の水音のみはとりわけ近く、めずらかな夜の小鳥の
囀
りかときかれたのだ。
The sound of the river was close among other things, and it sounded like it was the rare, night song of a small bird.
From 軽王子と衣通姫 by 三島由紀夫.
Word Note: めずらか is a rare version of 珍しい, attaching か instead of しい to the root.
Adverbial
~すがら: attaches to nouns. It may show that something is amid or that there's nothing else but X.
45. 雨は夜もすがら降り続いた。
The rain continued to rain throughout the night.
46. 彼は京都までの道すがら思い出話した。
He reminisced about being along the way Kyoto.
47. 身すがら = 身一つ
Just oneself
48. 手すがら
Nothing else but one's hand
Native verbal suffix endings attach to nouns to create new verbal phrases. Some originate from independent verbs while others are purely constructive endings.
~がかる | ~がる | ~ぐむ |
~さびる | ~染みる | ~立つ |
~つく | ~付く | ~付ける |
~ばむ | ~張る | ~びる |
~ぶる | ~めかす | ~めく |
~やく | ~やぐ |
~ぐむ: something is appearing which had been within something. So, it is used with many physical attributes.
1.柳
の木々が{
芽
ぐみ・芽吹き}、降り積もった雪が解けてきた。
The willows and all the trees began to sprout as the snow piles melted.
2. 氷
解
け
去
り
葦
は
角
ぐむ。
Ice melts as the reeds sprout forth.
3.
嘲笑
われて涙ぐんだ。
I was moved to tears from being scorned at.
4. 君の目が涙ぐんでいるようです。
Your eyes are watery.
~さびる shows that something behaves like something. It is very rare.
5.
神
さびた
社
A temple of age and divinity
6.
翁
さびる
Behaving as an old man
~染(じ)みる: often in a negative fashion, either shows that something is stained with something or something is quite felt as such.
7. 汗染みた。
It got a sweat stain.
8. 子供じいた真似をするな。
Don't act childish.
9. 彼の顔は何となく標本じみて見えた。
His face for some reason or another appeared to be like a specimen.
10. 年寄り染みた
Characteristic of aging
11. 油染みた
Oil-stained
12. 二階が
診察室
に待合室、下は
技工室
のあの
金槌
や、
金
をのばすローラーや、ガラスの炎や、エンジンなんかの、神経質な工場じみた音に加えて、小さい子供が四人もあり、おまけに
電車通
だった。
To the second floor there was an examination room and a waiting room, and below, in addition to the iron hammer, metal roller, glass fire, engine, and what not neurotic factory-like noises, there were four small kids, and to make matters worse, it was a street with a tram.
From 死体紹介人 by 川端康成.
~(だ)つ: characteristics of something in terms of condition and state.
13.
八百長
レースだと観衆が殺気立った。
The spectators seethed in rage that it was a rigged race.
14a. 鳥肌
立つ。
14b. 鳥肌が立つ。(Natural)
To have goosebumps.
~つく: attaches to onomatopoeic words to show a certain kind of condition.
15. 外国でまごついたことがある?
Have you gotten confused at a foreign country?
16. むかついてくる。
To get ticked off.
17. 画面がちらつく。
For the screen to flicker.
18. 俺の決心がぐらついちまった。(Used by somewhat older men)
My determination shuddered.
19. 小雨がまだぱらついてる。
Rain is still sprinkling.
~付(づ)く: shows inseparability or that you cannot part from a certain thing or condition.
20. インターネットづいてんのよ。(砕けた女性語)
You're really hooked to the internet.
21. 色づいてくのが分かったんだ。(Casual)
I knew things were going to start turning.
22. 調子付いている。
Things are going well.
23.
怖気
づいて逃げると!?
Running away for fear!?
24. 木が根付く。
For trees to take root.
~付(づ)ける grants a certain condition.
25. 納税者に義務付ける。
To obligate the taxpayers.
26. もう一度やってみろと力づけました。
I encouraged him to try it again once more.
27. 我々は基準として位置づけております。
We are positioning it as standard.
~ばむ shows that a certain condition appears or holds a certain quality.
28. この黄ばんだ紙は本当に古くなってきたな。
This yellow paper has really become old, hasn't it?
29.
気色
ばむ。
To miff one's anger.
30. むしむしして汗ばむ。
To feel warm and sweaty.
31. 俺の
腋
の下がじっとり汗染みた。
My armpits are damp and sweaty.
~張る: persists something and shows that a tendency is even more remarkable.
32. あまり
欲張
らないで。
Don't be so greedy.
33. そんなに
角張
っては
窮屈
だよ。
Being so ceremonious is quite constraining.
34. 四角張らずに
Without formality
35. 格式ばる。
To conform to formalities.
36. あまり気張るな。
Don't strain yourself.
~びる: is attached to nouns or 形容詞 to show that something is in some sort of condition.
37. 古びた。
Worn-out.
38. 大人びて見える。
To look adult-like.
39. ありゃ
鄙
びた
湯治
場
や。(Dialect; old people)
That over there's a beat-down health spa resort.
~ぶる: attaches to nouns and the stems of adjectives. "Pretending/acting as such".
40. 偉
ぶる。
To swagger.
41. もったいぶるなよ。
Stop making it such a big deal.
42. 学者ぶる。
To pretend to be a scholar.
~めかす: is the verbal form of ~めかしい. It shows that you make something out to be...
43. 冗談
めかす。
To be (half) in joke.
45.
煌
かせたあの夜空。
The brightened night sky.
46.
仄
めかしただけだ。
I only suggested.
~やく: attaches to onomatopoeic phrases to show that one takes on a certain behavior.
47. 耳元で
囁
く。
To whisper in the ears.
48. 僕は彼にそっと
呟
いた。
I gently muttered it to him.
~やぐ: attaches to nouns and the stems of adjectives to show that something takes on or behaves to fit a certain appearance.
49. 華
やいだ雰囲気。
A cheerful atmosphere.
50. 若やいだ声ですね。
You have a young sounding voice, don't you?
51. 物々
しく
鮮
やいで
Brilliantly and ostentatiously
Not all of Sino-Japanese suffixes will be mentioned in this lesson. Although this may look like it's a ton of information, you have actually seen the majority of these endings already.
-員(いん) is an employee of some sort.
1. 参議院議員
Member of the House of Councilors
2. 審判員
Umpire
-下(か) = "under the(...of)"
3. 独裁者が首都を戒厳令下に置いた。
The dictator put the capital under martial law.
4. 香港
は
中国
の
支配下
にある。
Hong Kong is under the control of China.
5. そちらは私の権限外でございますす。
That is outside my authority.
6. 普通外
Out of the ordinary
-街(がい) = Street
7. ロサンゼルスの日本人街
Japanese street in Los Angeles
-加減(かげん) = Tendency
8. 湯加減はどう?
How's the bath water?
9. 酒のいい飲み加減
Sake at the best temperature
-格好(かっこう) = Around...years old
10. 30格好の指導者
A leader around 30 years old
-間(かん) = Between. It is used with location words like cities and nations.
11. 東京・大阪間の本線はどちらでしょうか。
Where is the main line between Tokyo and Osaka?
12. 国際間の緊張を緩和することは不可能だ。
Lessening of international tensions is impossible.
13. 林間学校
Open-air school
-感(かん) = Sense
14. 劣等感との和解は簡単にはかなわない。
A compromise with inferiority is simply unbearable.
15. あの男は清潔感がある。
That man has a sense of cleanliness.
-巻(かん) = Volume (of a book)
16. ブリタニカの第10巻
The 10th volume of the Britannica
-観(かん) = Point of view
17. 日本人観
The Japanese point of view
-癌(がん) Cancer
18. 乳癌
Breast cancer
-儀 = In regards to/as for (with pronouns, people's names, or nouns associated with them).
19. 私儀(わたくしぎ)
As for me
Word Note: This is a very humble expression that refers to oneself used in the written language.
-気(ぎ) = -like nature
20. 商売気)のない実業家は存在するのでしょう。
I wonder a non-profit motivated businessman exists?
-級(きゅう) = Level; grade; degree; class
21. 第一級の博士
A first class professor
-強(きょう) = A little more than
22. 昨日の余震は震度五強だった。
Yesterday's aftershocks were a little more than 5 (degrees magnitude).
-狂(きょう) = Fan(atic)
23. 大の相撲狂じゃない。
I am no big sumo fanatic.
-県(けん) = Prefecture (Excluding Hokkaido, Kyoto, Osaka, and Tokyo)
24. 兵庫県は日本の43県の一つである。
Hyogo Prefecture is one of Japan's 43 ken-prefectures.
-圏(けん) = Bloc (sphere)
25. 木星の大気圏の外観を見ると大赤班が確認できる。
If you look at the surface of the atmosphere of Jupiter, you can confirm a Great Red Spot.
26. 関東一円が暴風圏に入る見込みです。
It is projected that all of the Kanto district will enter the storm zone.
Word Note: This 一円 means "the whole area", not "one yen".
-券(けん) = Ticket
搭乗券 | Boarding pass | 入場券 | Admission ticket | 航空券 | Plane ticket |
乗車券 | Railroad ticket | 会員券 | Membership card | 割引券 | Coupon |
-権(けん) = Right
27. 選挙権
The right to vote
-腱(けん) = Tendon
28. アキレス腱は足にある。
The Achilles' tendon is in the leg.
34. 殿御は女性から男性に対して敬っていう語である。
Gentleman is a phrase said to respect males from women.
Word Note: 殿御 is old-fashioned.
35. 「親御」とは他人の父母の敬称でございます。
"Oyago" is a respectful title of someone's father and mother.
-湖(こ) = Lake
36. 琵琶湖は日本で最大の面積と貯水量を誇り様々な種類が生息している。
Lake Biwa boasts the largest area and water capacity in Japan and various species inhabit it.
-公(こう) = Title that either shows respect, affection, or scorn.
菅公 | Great Mr. Kan | 熊公 | Mr. Bear | 先公 | Teacher (derogatory) | ポリ公 | Cop (derogatory) |
ワン公 | Mr. Doggy | エテ公 | Mr. Monkey |
-工(こう) = Person of a particular trade
37. 父は配管工をしています。-号(ごう)= Number/edition
38. 台風2号は那覇を襲ったということです。
Typhoon No. 2 hit Naha.
39. コロコロの6月号は来週に発行されるはずです。
The June issue of CoroCoro is supposed to be issued next week.
-座(ざ) = Constellation; name of theater
40. 歌舞伎座は2013年に再び開かれる予定です。
The Kabukiza Theater will be reopened in 2013.
41. こぐま座は小北斗七星とも呼ばれる。
Ursa Minor is also called the Little Dipper.
-山(さん・ざん) = Mount; mountain
42. 富士山は活火山(かっかざん)である。
Mount Fuji is an active volcano.
-酸(さん) = Acid
43. 蟻酸を扱う際に注意しなければいけないのだ。
You must be careful when you are dealing with formic acid.
-三昧(ざんまい) ="luxury" and is used in idiomatic expressions. It is usually used in positive contexts.
44.
贅沢
三昧
Living in luxury
45. 読書三昧でした。
It was a reader's paradise.
46a. 刃物
三昧に及ぶ。(不自然)
46b. 刃物沙汰に及ぶ。(自然)
To amount to a knife fight.
Phrase Note: The first option is rather strange. This is likely due to a mistranslation from a Western text into Japanese. However, this phrase may be seen used creatively in contexts where there is a luxury to be had with an array of 刃物.
-市(し) = City
47. 釜石市が津波で破壊されてしまった。
Kamaishi City was destroyed by a tsunami.
-誌(し) = Magazine
48. 週刊誌
Weekly magazine
-死(し) = Death
49. 自然死
Natural death
-師(し) = Skilled worker; Reverend
50. 美容師に髪を結ってもらう。
She has her hairdresser do her hair.
-視(し) = View
51. 採算を度外視する。
To neglect profit.
-弱(じゃく) = A little less than. The opposite of 強.
52. 地震は六弱の強さでした。
The earthquake was a strength of a little less than magnitude 6 (on the Shindo scale).
-衆(しゅう) = The masses
53. 旦那衆
Gents
-相(しょう) = Minister
54. 外(務)相
Foreign minister
-賞(しょう) = Prize
55. ノーベル賞を与える。
To give the Nobel Prize.
-省(しょう) = Ministry
56. 厚生労働省は日本の行政機関であります。
The Ministry of Health, Labor, and Welfare is a governmental body of Japan.
-症(しょう) = Disease
57. 感染症
Infectious disease
-商(しょう) = Dealer
58. 美術商
Art dealer
-州(しゅう) = State; province
59. アラスカ(州)は寒すぎるじゃん?
Isn't Alaska too cold?
-宗(しゅう) = Sect
60. 天台宗は大乗仏教の宗派の一つで、法華経に基づいた。
The Tendai sect is a faction of Mahayana Buddhism and is based off of the Lotus Sutra.
Adding more suffixes to your vocabulary will greatly help your vocabulary skills.
-城(じょう) = Castle
1. 姫路城は兵庫県にあります。
Himeji Castle is in Hyogo Prefecture.
-状(じょう) = State; condition
2. 液状
Liquid state
-上(じょう) = "from...point of view". At times it may also mean "on" as in on something.
3a. iPad上でFlash Playerが作動できません。
3b. iPadではFlash Playerが作動できません。
Flash Player doesn't work on the iPad.
4. 立場上言えない。
I cannot say in relation to the situation.
5. 歴史上
From a historical point
6.
隕石
が落ちたせいで地球上の色んな動物が絶滅した。
Many animals have gone extinct on the Earth due to meteorites.
7. 健康上の理由で、彼が退職するという旨の連絡をしました。
On reasons in terms of health, he gave a message to the effect that he'll resign.
8. 法律上
In the eyes of the law
9. 実際(上)
In practice
10a. 構文上
10b. 文の構成上
As a matter of sentence structure
-性(せい) = -Ness
11. 安全性
Safeness
-製(せい) = Made in
12. 日本製の車は安全ですよ。
Japanese made cars are safe.
-制(せい) = System (of order)
13. 私は交替制で働いています。
I'm working in a shift.
-世(せい) = Era; epoch
14. エリサベス2世はアイルランドをご訪問なさいました。
Elizabeth II visited Ireland.
15. 洪積世にある大陸の形は現在とほぼ同じである。
The shape of the continents were about the same in the Diluvial Epoch.
-星(せい) = Star
16. 南十字星
The 4 brightest stars of the Southern Cross.
-前(ぜん) = Before. Stiff and literary.
紀元前 | B.C. | 使用前に | Before usage |
-然(ぜん) = -like. It is very uncommon.
17. 学生然
Student-like
-千万(せんばん) = Exceeding
無礼千万 | Extremely rude | 笑止千万 | Quite absurd |
-層(そう) = Layer; stratum
18. 溶岩層を見たことがありますか。
Have you seen a lava bed?
-著(ちょ) = Written by
19. この本は宮部みゆき著です。
This book is written by Miyabe Miyuki.
-庁(ちょう) = Office; agency
官公庁 | Public offices | 金融庁 | Financial Service Agency |
-調(ちょう) = Meter; style
20. 七五調
Seven-five meter
-艇(てい) = Boat
21. 魚雷艇
Torpedo boat
-的 = -ic. Makes things 形容動詞. Whether to use it or not is a hard question. For instance, 基本の and 基本的な are both possible, but the latter is more abstract. Whether something should be stated more concretely and abstractly is going to differ in context and among speakers. What makes this more confusing is that the absence of な with 的 is not always certain, but it usually happens in jargon and or long formal phrases. It is also important to note that 的の is old-fashioned, and if you read anything earlier than World War II, you will encounter it.
22. 水深は比較的に浅い。
The water level is relatively shallow.
23. 私的に
Personally
Speech Note: The above phrase is not proper, but it is becoming increasingly more common.
24. 経済的な自動車
An economical vehicle
25. 「行くわ」というと、女性的に聞こえる。
If you say "iku wa", it sounds feminine.
-都(と) = Capital prefecture
26. 東京都
Tokyo Prefecture
-党(とう) = Political party
27. 民主党の調査
A Japanese Democratic Party investigation
-島(とう) = Island
28. 硫黄島(いおうとう)
Iwo Jima
-塔(とう) = Tower
29. テレビ塔
Television tower
-堂(どう) = In the names of important buildings such as temples, shrines, the legislature, etc.
30. 国会議事堂は立法府の建物だ。
The Diet Building is the building of the legislature.
-道(どう) = In Hokkaido Prefecture
31. 北海道
Hokkaido Prefecture
-派(は) = Faction
32. 正統派
Orthodox faction
-版(ばん) = Edition
33. パリ版
Paris edition
-犯(はん) = Crime
34. 殺人犯
Homicide
-判(はん) = Product size
35. 大判(おおはん)
Large size
-班(はん) = Group; crew
36. カメラ班
Camera crew
-藩(はん) = Clan
37. 竜野藩
Tatsuno Clan
-費(ひ) = Bill/expenses
医療費 | Medical bill | 材料費 | Material cost | 生活費 | Living costs |
-妃(ひ) = Queen
38. 皇太子妃
Crowned princess
-票(ひょう) = Vote
39.
浮動
票じゃないか。
Isn't it a floating vote?
40. 反対票を投ずる。
To give a no vote.
Word Note: 投ずる is normally 投じる.
-表(ひょう) = List; table
予定表 | Schedule | 通知表 | Report card | 周期表 | Periodic table |
視力検査表 | Eye chart | 九九表 | Multiplication table | 時刻表 | Time table |
-病(びょう) = Sickness
高山病 | Altitude sickness | 風土病 | Endemic disease | 放射線病 | Radiation sickness |
心臓病 | Heart disease | 肺病 | Lung disease | 接触伝染病 | Contagious disease |
-府(ふ) = Metropolitan prefecture (Osaka and Kyoto)
41. 大阪府
Osaka Prefecture
-風(ふう) = Style
42. フランス風の料理が大好きですよ。
I love French food.
-風情(ふぜい) = Worthless person
43. 私風情にはもったいないでしょう。
A worthless person like me is unworthy of this, right?
-補(ほ) = Assistant
44. 書記官補
Assistant secretary
-法(ほう) = Law
労働法 | Labor law | 国際法 | International law | 交通法 | Traffic law |
行政法 | Administrative law | 禁酒法 | Prohibition | 連邦法 | Federal law |
-魔(ま) = Freak
45. インターネット魔
Internet freak
-放題(ほうだい) = "a state left to continue as is" or "...as much as you want".
46. 2000円で食べ放題です。
Eat as much as you want for 2,000 yen.
47. 荒
れ放題の庭だね。
That's an overgrown garden with weeds, isn't it?
-余(よ) = Over
48. 日本に二ヶ月余、滞在するつもりです。
I plan to stay in Japan for over 2 months.
-楼(ろう) = Tower
49. 摩天
楼
Skyscraper
-領(りょう) = Territory
50. アメリカ領
American territory
-料(りょう) = Fee
原稿料 | Contribution fee | サービス料 | Service fee | 通行料 | Toll |
診察料 | Doctor fee | 保険料 | Insurance premium | 授業料 | Tuition fee |
-量(りょう) = Amount
51. 読書量が多い。
To read a lot.
52. 降雨量
Rainfall
-力(りょく) = Power
53. 原子力委員会
The Atomic Energy Commission
Word Note: -会 is another suffix meaning "meeting; group; commission".
-類(るい) = Kind
菌類 | Fungus | 地衣類 | Lichens |
There are several suffixes in Japanese that represent states of appearance.
~だらけ attaches to nouns to describe how something is riddled with something. ~だらけ may be used with both physical and psychological items. There is an extent to how you can use this though. Things like 混乱 だらけ would be wrong. This is because it should be used with things that are either physical or dealing with (emotional) phenomenon and not a "state". Rather than 混乱だらけ, consider phrases like すごく 狼狽 している or とても 動揺 している.
1. 彼女は(口を開けば){不平・不満}{ばっかり言ってる・だらけだ}な。
She's full of complaints isn't she?
2. パソコンは
埃
{かぶっていた・だらけだった}。
The desktop was covered in dust.
3.
後悔
だらけ
Covered in regret
4.
傷
だらけ
Covered in injuries
5. 血
だらけになった
殺人犯
は
逃
げ
場
がなくなって
自殺
したそうだ。
They say that since the murderer covered in blood didn't have a place to run away, he committed suicide.
~まみれ comes from 塗 れる which means "to be covered with". Similar to ~だらけ ~まみれ shows how something is completely covered in something. Unlike ~だらけ, ~まみれ is solely used with physical objects. However, there is a trend to use ~まみれ with things that have a "physical persona". This, though, is metaphoric. Creating metaphors in any language causes rules to become more flexible.
6.
遺体
は
血塗
れだったということです。
It is said that the corpse was completely covered in blood.
7. メキシコ
湾
は{辺り一面}
重油
{埋め尽くされました・まみれになりました}。
The Gulf of Mexico became completely covered in heavy oil.
8. 彼
はただの
挫折塗
れのやつだけだ。
He's just completely covered in failure.
~ずくめ shows that something is "completely...". It is normally either attached to nouns of colors or こと. There is, though, a condition that whatever it attaches to that the context is in relation to human intent.
A similar ending is ~ずくし. It means "all sorts of". Here, the human intent condition is non-existent. In writing, using づ instead of ず is OK. This is just a conflict between Old and New orthographies that has just been left to the individual to decide.
Examples
9. 人
が
黒尽
くめでした。
The person was completely black.
10. いい
事
づくしの
人
A person full of good luck
11a. 白
づくめで
抗議
してる
人
は
窃盗罪
で
訴
えられた
人達
だ。
11b. 抗議
をしている、
白
づくめの
人達
は、
窃盗罪
で
訴
えられた。
The people protesting dressed in white were accused of theft.
~めく shows what something looks like or what condition something becomes, and it may follow nouns, adverbs, or the stem of adjectives and verbs. The closest translation for ~めく is "to show signs of". Although all tenses are possible, ~めく is normally only used in the non-past or past tense. Depending on the verb, there are may be more options. For instance, うごめく can be seen in things like the progressive.
To be astir | ざわめく | To flash | 閃く | To be mysterious | 謎めく |
To glimmer | 仄めく | To color | 色めく | To be spring-like | 春めく |
To wriggle | うごめく | To flourish | 時めく | To be autumn-like | 秋めく |
Grammar Note: When attached to verbs, the new verb is often seen contracted and then written differently. ~めく is most often used with nouns and 形容動詞.
12. 教室
は
興奮
で
騒
めいた。
The classroom stirred with excitement.
13. 庭
の
楓
が
色
めくのは
本当
に
美
しいですよね。
The changing in colors of the maple trees in the garden is really beautiful, isn't it?
14. {うわぁ・ああ}、{もぞもぞ動いてる・
蠢
いてる}
虫
(がいる)!
Ah, a wriggling worm!
15. 彼
は
今
を
時
めく
歌手
・
有名人
です。
He is one of the most prosperous singers/famous people of the time.
16.
謎
めいた
様子
をしている。
To have an air of mystery.
17. 謎
めいた
様相
を
呈
する。
To be in a situation covered in mystery.
18. 冬
めいてきた。
It became winter-like.
19. 陽光に川面が煌めく。
The river surface glistens in the sunlight.
20. どよめいて、人々が飛びのく。一人の背中が飛鳥にぶつかった。はね飛ばされて、壁に肩をぶつける。さらにはね返ってよろめき、あやうく転びかけたときだった。
Making a stir, people jumped back. A person's back hit Asuka. Being sent flying, she hit her shoulder on the wall. In addition, it was when she had bounced back, staggered, and dangerously started to tumble.
From 野生の風 by 村山由佳.
~みどろ is a less common alternative to the suffix ~まみれ to show things being covered in something.
21. 血みどろの遺体
A bloody corpse
22. 汗みどろの労働者
A sweat covered laborer
~げ conjugates as a 形容動詞 . Used to show a sense of true appearance, it describes something with intense fervor and emotion. Lastly, ~げ may be attached to the stem of adjectives and to nouns.
23. 悲
しげに
泣
く。
Cry while being sad all over.
24. 均衡予算を黙殺するのは大人げない。
Ignoring the balanced budget proposal is childish.
25. 彼
は
何
か
言
いたげな
顔
をしていた。
He had the face of wanting to say something.
26. 「今も新しい戦争が僕らを追っかけて来ているのかもしれないし、僕らのなかの前の戦争が、亡霊のように僕らを追っかけているかもしれないんです。」と修一は憎さげに、「お父さまこそ、あの娘がちょっと変わっているから、ひそかに魅力を感じて、妙な考えをくどくどもってまわってらっしゃる。女がほかの女とどこかちょっとちがっているだけで、男はつかまるのですからね。」
"A new word may have come its way to chase after us even now, but the war of the past within ourselves may be chasing after us like a departed spirit", and Shuichi continued odiously with "And you, of course, Father inwardly feel a mystique since she's changed a little, and you're going about stuttering long-winded, strange thoughts. That's man is just something that it's caught up with the small differences one woman has with other women."
From 山の音 by 川端康成.
27. 菊子は不審げに信吾を見て、そして顔を赤らめた。
Kikuko looked strangely at Shingo and then blushed.
From 山の音 by 川端康成.
Grammar Note: ~げ is almost never used with verbs. ~げ is closest to ~そうだ, but ~そうだ lacks the emotional emphasis. As emotional emphasis is very important, it is used with nouns that we aspire to be and adjectives that express our emotions.
The reading け and ぎ also exist, and they confusingly are used similarly to the げ reading. Luckily, the latter reading is not written as 気. The reading け is seen a lot in phrases like 飾り気 (affectation), 色気 (sex appeal), and 寒気 (feeling chilly). 人気 has two readings. When it is read as にんき, it means "popularity", and when it is read as ひとけ, it is the antonym of deserted, but it is usually used in this sense in the phrase 人気がない.
The reading ぎ of 気 is rather restricted to nouns that can have perceptually suitable characteristics. Words such as 商売気 (mercenary mind), 男気 (chivalry), and 女気 (woman care) come to mind, and the only other examples are all literary words unlikely to be used in conversation, or at the very least appear rarely in literature. Examples of such words include 謀反気 (rebelling spirit), 芝居気 (theatrical spirit), 芸気 (theatrical spirit), and 回り気 (worrying and doubtful spirit).
28. お前さんも余程回り気の人だね。
You're quite the worry wort too, aren't you.
From 深川女房 by 小栗風葉.
Interestingly enough, the most common examples of ぎ and け are replaced with っけ. Examples of this include人っ気, 飾りっ気, and 商売っ気. Even words that typically only use け such as 真っ黒け and 真っ白け may have っ insertion in actual conversation. Even more interesting is the fact that the phrases 真っ赤っ赤 (bright red) and 真っ黄っ黄 (bright yellow) exist. The first one shows up dictionaries and is used widely, but the latter is rather dialectical. The interesting point here is how the forms seem to mimic the use of っけ for emphasis.
~ 気味 is seen after either a noun or the 連用形 of a verb. It shows a visible indication or slight feeling and is often used in a negative context. Common translations include "sign of", "on the...side", and "slight".
29. 彼は
疲
れ
気味
だ。
He has the signs of fatigue.
30. 彼
は
太
り
気味
だ。
He's a little on the heavy side.
31. 今朝
はちょっと
風邪気味
だ。
I have a slight feeling of a cold this morning.
Word Note: ~味 comes from 気味, which means "sensation" or "tendency".
Although most of these words come from the last forty years or so, it has been a trend in Japanese to create new verbs by just attaching る to nouns, contractions of nouns, or contractions of other phrases, to create new verbs. They tend to break several rules in the process, but that's what makes them ever more interesting.
To clarify what this lesson includes, it is an exhaustive list of these words that have been made in the last 100 years or so. As such, not all of these are used. These are all generally treated as slang, so it is still best to use the expressions on the far right column. There is also differences in the frequency of these phrases depending on region.
The most peculiar verbs of all are those that have る attached to them in slang. Below is a rather exhaustive list of these words. They are all supposed to in theory be conjugated as 一段 verbs, because they are slang involving adding る attached to a stem, if you find a non-一段 conjugation for any of them, don't be surprised. In fact, a lot of these are 五段 verbs.
In fact, the conjugation power of many of these verbs is not to the full extant as a normal verb. That is because of their recent origin.
事故る | じこる | To get in an accident | Slang for 事故に遭う |
退治る | たいじる | To exterminate | Slang for 退治する |
皮肉る | ひにくる | To speak sarcastically | Slang for 皮肉をいう |
愚痴る | ぐちる | To complain | Slang for 愚痴をいう |
駄句る | だくる | To make horrible poems | Slang for つまらない句を作る |
ラグる | らぐる | To lag | Slang for ラグがある |
サボる | さぼる | To be truant/play hooky | Slang for 仕事を怠ける |
ミスる | ミスる | To make a miss | Slang for ミスを犯す |
写メる | しゃめる | To take a picture with cellphone and e-mail it to someone. | Slang for 写メールを撮る |
ポシャる | ぽしゃる | To fizzle out | Slang from シャッポを脱ぐ |
パニクる | ぱにくる | To get in a panic | Slang for 頭がパニックになる |
寝ぼる | ねぼる | To oversleep | Slang for 寝坊する |
デコる | でこる | To decorate | Slang for 飾りつけをする |
きょどる | きょどる | To act suspiciously | Slang for 挙動不審な行動を取る |
デマる | でもる | To say baseless lies | Slang for 根拠のないう噂話をする |
ハモる | はもる | To create harmony | Slang for ハーモニーを作る |
ファブる | ふぁぶる | To use febreze | Slang for ファブリーズを吹き付ける |
ピヨる | ぴよる | To be knocked out and see stars | Slang for ふらついている活動不能状態になる |
脂る | やにる | To smoke | Slang for タバコを吸う |
ヤグる | やぐる | To be witnessed cheating | Slang for 浮気現場を目撃される |
ラリる | らりる | To be high on a thinner | Slang for シンナーで酔ったようなふらふら状態になる |
ミソる | みそる | To reach one's thirties | Slang for 三十代になる |
ロンゲる | ろんげる | For a guy to grow his hair out | Slang for 男性が長髪にする |
はぶる | はぶる | To leave out | Slang for 仲間外れにする |
ハミる | はみる | To leave out | Slang for 仲間外れにする |
拉致る | らちる | To abduct | Slang for 拉致する |
モナる | もなる | To commit adultery | Slang for 不倫をする |
ルンペる | るんぺる | To become a vagrant | Slang for 浮浪者になる |
ペリる | ぺりる | To have a shameless attitude | Slang for 図々しい態度を取る |
ボコる | ぼこる | To gang up on someone | Slang for 袋叩きにする |
ブチる | ぶちる | To break a promise | Slang for 約束を破る |
凸る | でこる | To charge at | Slang for 突撃する |
凸る | とつる | To charge at | Slang for 突撃する |
ビビる | びびる | To get cold feet | Slang for おじけづく |
チャリる | ちゃりる | To ride a bicycle | Slang for 自転車に乗る |
フィニる | ふぃにる | To finish something | Slang for 物事を終わらせる |
ポチる | ぽちる | To click purchase and buy | Slang for 購入ボタンを押して買う |
ポニョる | ぽにょる | To get fat; watch "Ponyo on the Cliff" and act like Ponyo | Slang for 太る; 「崖の上のポニョ」を見てからポニョのような行動をする |
バビる | ばびる | To be really surprised | Slang for 非常に驚く |
オケる | おける | To go do karaoke | Slang for カラオケに行く |
パシャる | ぱしゃる | To take a photograph | Slang for 写真を撮る |
テクる | てくる | To have a technique | Slang for テクニックを持っている |
デリバる | でりばる | To take delivery | Slang for 出前を取る |
デリる | でりる | To delete; take delivery | Slang for 削除する; 出前を取る |
バクる | ばくる | To catch a criminal; to steal an idea | Slang for 犯人を捕まえる; アイデアを盗む |
テンパる | てんぱる | To be rushed; to lose flexibility | Slang for 焦る; 余裕がない状態になる |
直る | ちょくる | To confess right when you meet | Slang for 会ってすぐ告白する |
ギコる | ぎこる | To be addicted to the Internet | Slang for ネット中毒になる |
チョメる | ちょめる | To have sex | Slang for 性交する・男女が仲よくする |
コスる | こする | To cosplay | Slang for コスチューム・プレイをする |
赤る | せきる | To exchange info on an infrared system | Slang for 赤外通信で情報交換する |
タヒる | たひる | To die; be extremely tired | Slang for 死ぬ; 非常に疲れている |
ダビる | だびる | To give a copy to the media | Slang for メディアへコピーする |
即る | そくる | To have sex with a girl you just picked up | Slang for ナンパした女性と会ったその日に性交に及ぶ |
ダブる | だぶる | To double; repeat grade level | Slang for 重複する; 留年する |
チクる | ちくる | To tell-tale | Slang for 告げ口(を)する |
だきょる | だきょる | To compromise | Slang for 妥協する |
駄弁る | だべる | To chat endlessly | Slang for 駄弁を弄する |
ザビる | ざびる | To be a person with thin hair | Slang for 髪が薄い人である |
ジャズる | じゃずる | To enjoy jazz | Slang for ジャズを楽しむ |
ジモる | じもる | To go to one's hometown for fun | Slang for 地元で遊ぶ |
シケる | しける | For the economy to be bad | Slang for 景気が悪い |
ビニる | びにる | To go to a convenience store | Slang for コンビニエンスストアに行く |
サンダる | さんだる | To go to a convenience store late at night | Slang for 深夜コンビニエンスストアに行く |
腰る | こしる | To chicken | Slang for 腰が引ける |
チキる | ちきる | To chicken | Slang for 怯える。 |
サクる | さくる | To delete; come home quickly; sacrifice | Slang for 削除する; さくっと帰る; 生贄にする |
ぐれる | ぐれる | To be delinquent | Slang for あてが外れる |
キャピる | きゃぴる | To be flippant like a girl | Slang for 若い女性のようにはじける |
ゲトる | げとる | To get what one wants | Slang for ほしいものを手に入れる |
ケミる | けみる | To have good chemistry | Slang for ハーモニーを織り成す |
呉儀る | ごぎる | To cancel a commitment right before it | Slang for 直前に約束をキャンセルする |
雑魚る | ざこる | To lose one's honor/charm | 名誉・魅力がなくなる。 |
グダる | ぐだる | To be exhausted | Slang for グダグダだ |
ダグる | だぐる | To be dead tired | Slang for ぐったりする |
パクる | ぱくる | To pick up ladies | Slang for ナンパする |
タクる | たくる | To ride a taxi | Slang for タクシーに乗る |
ハイカる | はいかる | To be in Western fashion | Slang for 西洋風の格好をする |
ガスる | がする | To be misty; to go to Gasto | Slang for 霧がかかる; ガスとで飲食する |
亀る | かめる | To be late | Slang for 遅れる |
過疎る | かそる | To depopulate; hair to thin out | Slang for 過疎化する; 髪の毛が薄くなる |
トラバる | とらばる | To trackback | Slang for ブログのトラックバックをする |
バグる | ばぐる | For bugs to break out | Slang for 虫が発生する |
ウニる | うにる | For ones head to be all confused | Slang for 頭が混乱になる |
ブログる | ぶろぐる | To blog | Slang for ブログを利用する |
小田急る | おだきゅうる | To ride the Odakyuu Line | Slang for 小田急線に乗る |
イモる | いもる | To be frightened | Slang for おじけづく |
エダる | えだる | To work with no rest | Slang for 不眠不休で働く |
アムる | あむる | To copy Amuro Namie fashion; to sell Amway products | Slang for 安室奈美恵のファッションを真似する; アムウェイ商品を売る |
ふぁぼる | ふぁぼる | To favorite something on Twitter | Slang for Twitterのつぶやきをお気に入りに登録する |
アサヒる | あさひる | To fabricate | Slang for 捏造する |
ヤフる | やふる | To surf on Yahoo | Slang for ヤフーで検索する |
ビる | びる | To surf on MSN live search | Slang for MSNライブサーチで検索する |
MSNる | えむえすえぬる | To surf on MSN live search | Slang for MSNライブサーチで検索する |
ライブサーチる | らいぶさーちる | To surf on MSN live search | Slang for MSNライブサーチで検索する |
リバる | りばる | To become free; to puke from drinking | Slang for 解放する; 飲みすぎて嘔吐する |
アジる | あじる | To agitate | Slang for 扇動する |
無視る | むしる | To ignore | Slang for 無視する |
ディスる | でぃする | To disrespect | Slang for 軽蔑する・罵る・貶す |
告る | こくる | To confess | Slang for 告白する |
チャーる | ちゃーる | To go to a coffee shop | Slang for 喫茶店に行く |
ラーメる | らーめる | To go eat ramen | Slang for ラーメンを食べに行く |
ググる | ぐぐる | To google | Slang for グーグルで検索する |
テロる | てろる | To terrorize | Slang for 暴力に訴えてことを成す |
マクる | まくる | To go to Mc. Donalds | Slang for マクドナルドに行く |
マクドる | まくどる | To go to Mc. Donalds (West Japan) | Slang for マクドナルドに行く |
マヨる | まよる | To put mayonnaise (on) | Slang for マヨネーズをかける |
ファミる | ふぁみる | To go a family restaurant | Slang for ファミリーレストランに行く |
サダハる | さだはる | To keep on at it even in one's fifties | Slang for 中年になってもがんばる |
小林る | こばやしる | To do something refreshing | Slang for すかっとしたことをする |
アピる | あぴる | To appeal to (コギャル語) | Slang for アピールする |
ネグる | ねぐる | To neglect | Slang for ネグレクトする |
江川る | えがわる | To sacrifice others without hesitation | Slang for 犠牲にしてはばからない |
田淵る | たぶちる | To be chubby | Slang for 太り気味 |
野暮る | やぼる | To do something thoughtless | Slang for 野暮なことをする |
スタバる | すたばる | To go to Starbucks | Slang for スターバックスに行く |
カンコる | かんこる | To be desolate | Slang for 人が少なく寂れている |
There are several exceptional honorific verbs that have more than one usage. This lesson will focus on such verbs. This lesson covers mostly any meaning that you may find in a dictionary. Dictionaries aren't always up-to-date with things, but usages you'll find here go from samurai-like old-fashioned speech to very common speech. So, there is definitely a lot you can learn about these words. It's just that not all of the information will be practical in conversing in 敬語.
The Intransitive Verb 参る
1. The humble verb form of 行く and 来る, the speaker is generally oneself or someone in one's in-group. 参る is humble, but so is 伺う. The difference between the two is that 伺う should be used when going to the place of the addressee.
1. 今すぐ参ります。
I will come at once.
2. 喜んで参ります。
I would be glad to come.
2. A polite version of 行く and 来る. Notice how it is extended to items.
3. 絶好の機会が参りました。
The ideal chance has come.
4. 電車が参ります。
The train will come.
5. 時間があれば参ります。
If I have time, I will come.
3. In the 命令形 primarily in the speech of samurai, it is a boastful equivalent of 行く or 来る. Or, it may be a solemn variant of 行く or 来る where it is also acceptable in honorific speech as 参られる.
6. 近う参れ。(Classical)
Come close.
4. To make homage to a shrine.
7. (お)墓にお参りをする。
To visit a grave.
8. (お)寺へお参りに行きます。
I am going to go worship at the temple.
5. To lose or surrender.
9. まいった。 (Not so common anymore)
I'm beat.
10. そう簡単には参らぬぞ。(Old-fashioned)
I won't surrender so easily.
11. 参ったか。 (Anime-like; somewhat old)
Do you give up?
6. To be bewildered.
12. 彼女の行儀の悪さには参りました。
I was embarrassed at her awful manners.
7. To be worn down from hardship in mind and body.
13. まいった体
A worn down body
14. こう忙しくて神経がまいった。
I was busy like this and my nerves wore out.
8. To die.
15. とうとうあいつも参った。(Old-fashioned)
Even he finally died.
9. To have one's heart stolen by the opposite sex.
16. 彼女の美しさにすっかり参ったのだな。
I was completely had by her beauty, wasn't I?
10. To suffer from.
17. 風邪でまいっている。 (ちょっと古い言い方)
風で苦しい。(More natural)
I'm suffering from a cold.
18. 俺ん足痛ぇまいっとるで。(Dialectical)
I'm suffering from a hurt leg.
The Transitive Verb 参る
It is used at the end of a formal letter to a give a meaning of giving the letter to a superior. Or it is used to mean "to service" or "to present to". These meanings are very rare, old-fashioned, and warrior-like phrases. So, they are essentially no longer used.
19. 御神酒を参る。 (文語的)
To serve sacred wine.
20. 母上様参る (手紙の脇付にする、古めかしい語)
Letter presented to thy mother
The Supplementary Verb 参る
1. "...ていく・くる" in humble speech.
21. さまざまな体験をしてまいりました。
I have come to experience various things.
2. "...ていく・くる" in polite speech.
22. 雨が降ってまいりました。
The rain came.
23. 日増しに暑くなってまいりました。
It has been becoming hotter by the day.
3. In samurai speech in the 命令形 as a boastful word in "...ていく・くる" or as a solemn expression.
24. 一度こちらへ連れて参れ。
Come lead to here once.
伺う is either the humble form of the verbs "to listen/ask", "to talk to guests" or "to visit/to come". Remember that 伺う is more polite than 参る and should only be used in contexts referring to visiting people and not things.
25. よろしかったら明日伺います。
I will come tomorrow if it is alright with you.
26. 二、三の質問を伺ってもよろしいですか。
May I ask you a couple of questions?
27. 近々渡米される由伺いました。
I heard that you're going to America soon.
28. 早速お話をお伺いしましょう。
I shall listen to your story promptly.
27. 暑中お伺い申し上げます。
I am inquiring about your health in the summer season.
28. 伝言を伺いましょうか。
Shall I take a message?
29. 御用をお伺いしていますか。
Are you being waited on?
30. お宅へお伺いします。
I'm going to come to your house.
仰る, a contraction of 仰せられる, is the respectful form of the verb いう and may also show what someone's name is. 仰られる is to be avoided, but 言われる is too direct for most honorific situations. 仰せられる is the most polite form of this word. 仰る is sometimes used by females in the 命令形, 仰い.
31. 早く仰い。(やや女性っぽくてあまり使われていない)
Hurry and say it.
32. 礼ですが、お名前は何と仰いますか。
Excuse me, but what is your name?
33. 先生は何と仰っているのですか。
What is the teacher saying?
34. 仰る通りだと存じております。
I think exactly what you say.
35. 総理大臣はこう仰せられました。
The Prime Minister said so.
申す is the humble form of 言う and the more polite version is 申し上(あ)げる. However, 申し上げる is not normally used when you are giving respect to those involved in something.
36. 鈴木と申します。
I am Suzuki.
38. 皆様に心からお礼を申し上げます。
I give gratitude to all of you from my heart.
39. 申し上げておきますが
For your information
40. ここは銀座と申します。 (Might hear in some play)
This is called Ginza.
申し上げる may be a supplementary verb after a noun with the prefixes お- or ご- to make verbs humble. 申す may also do this, but it isn't as humble.
41. お待ちしております。(一番自然)
お待ち申しております。 (あまり使われていない)
I am waiting.
42. お詫び申し上げます。
I must apologize.
43. お悔やみ申し上げます。
Please accept my condolences.
44a. ご相伴申します。 (やや古い言い方)
44b. お相伴申します。 (古い言い方)
44c. お相伴与ります。 (やや珍しい言い方)
I shall be partaking.
It is also possible to see 申す used in boastful and neutral yet polite context. These sentences are old-fashioned and should not be applied into your speech.
45. 名を申せ。(Old-fashioned)
Say your name.
46. そう申しておらん。(Old)
I'm not saying such/that.
It is also possible in older texts (古文) to see it as 申される.
47. おぬし、今何と申されたか。(Classical)
What have you said?
頂く, aside from honorifics, may mean "to place on top of". It can also be used figuratively to show a title being placed upon someone, but this isn't really common.
48. 彼は頭に霜を頂いた。
His head is covered in frost.
Idiomatic Expression: Refers to people who with age begin to have white hair.
49. 星を頂いて帰る。
To return home with stars on top.
Idiomatic Expression: Particularly used to refer when people come home from work in the night.
50a. 王冠を頂く。(Figurative)
50b. 王冠を被る。(Normal)
To wear a crown.
51. 白く雪を頂いた山頂を眺める。
To gaze at mountain peaks covered in snow.
52. この展望台から、白く雪を頂いた大山が一望できます。
You can see all of the snow-covered peak of Mt. Daisen from this observatory.
53. 遠くに雪を頂いた富士山が見えました。
I was able to see snow-covered Mt. Fuji from afar.
54. 〇氏を名誉会長に頂く。 (あまり言わない)
To have someone as the honorary president.
もらう
いただく shows favor. It may be used with お- and ご-, which gives an added sense of regular politeness. いただく may also be used to show that one receives something of profitable value without effort. -ていただく is used to show favor and is seen in the patterns ~ていただく, お- verb in 連用形 + いただく, or ご- 漢語 noun + いただく.
55. お暇を頂く。
To receive free time.
56. ご高配を頂く。
To receive good offices.
57. 手伝っていただけませんか。
Could you please help me?
58. 私の事はご心配頂かなくて結構です。
It is alright for you to not trouble over (me).
賜る, however, is much more polite than いただく. However, it is also rarer and sometimes old-fashioned.
59. 結構なお品を賜り、ありがとうございます。
I am so grateful you bestowed us this fine good.
頂戴する is possible in honorifics in limited situations.
60. ご意見を頂戴し、ありがとうございます。
We are thankful for your opinions.
~させていただく is used to show that one is to be allowed the favor to do something.
61. 閉会をさせていただきます。
Allow me to have the privilege of closing (this event).
食べる, 飲む, & 風呂に入る
いただく is often used as the humble form of 食べる and 飲む. Being used to mean 風呂に入る is not so common, but it is still possible.
62. いただきましょうか。
Shall we eat/drink?
63. では、お先に頂きます。
Alright, then I'll be first (to eat/drink/get in tub).
Of course, not all of these meanings are common or used frequently. 致す is typically used to mean する in humble contexts, but it also shows up in many set expressions.
64. 何に致しましょうか。
What can I do for you.
65. お手伝いいたしましょうか。
Shall I help you?
66. 私の不徳の致すところです。
It is entirely my fault.
Sentence Note: Ex. 66 is not meant to be something you would just randomly say. Rather, this is very ceremonious and likely to be used in a very formal situation where elegant use of honorifics is expected of you.
67. 祖国に思いを致す。
To sympathize with one's native country.
68. 力を致す。
To exert one's strength to the maximum.
69. 謹んでお詫び致します。
謹んでお詫び申し上げます。(Even more common)
I humbly apologize.
70. 何をぐずぐずいたしておるのか。(古風で尊大な言い方)
What are you complaining about?
71. あと十分致しますと別府に着きます。
We will arrive in Beppu in another ten minutes.
72. よろしくお願い致します。
Please treat me well.
73. 危うきを見て命を致す。 (Proverb/saying)
To give one's life in a crisis.
74. 参上いたせ。 (古風で尊大な言い方)
Call on him!
Sentence Note: Such a usage of this verb as seen in Ex. 74 for boastful purposes is essentially 武家言葉.
差し上げる is the honorific form of the giving verbs あげる and やる and is used as a supplementary verb as well. It also has another meaning of "to lift". Although in honorifics it is humble, there are other aspects to Japanese culture that might actually make it rude. This is the case in Ex. 77a below.
75. 高々と差し上げる。
To lift up very high.
76. お茶も差し上げずに失礼いたしました。
I have been very rude for not having given you tea.
77a. 何か飲み物でも差し上げましょうか。 (ちょっと失礼)
77b. 何かお飲物はいかがですか。
77c. 何かお飲みになりますか。
Can I get you anything to drink?
78. 先着100名様にプレゼントを差し上げます。
We will give a prize to the first 100 people.
79. ご案内して差し上げなさい。
Please guide him.
給う, also pronounced and spelled as たもう, is an old honorific verb meaning "to give". As a supplementary verb, it attaches to the 連用形 to show respect to superiors. In the 命令形, though, it creates a harsh command.
80. 神様の与えたもうた試練
A trial sent by God
81. 止め給え。 (Older guy to inferior/purposely old-fashioned)
Stop it!
82. 黙ってくれたまえ。 (Older guy to inferior/purposely old-fashioned)
Shut up!
83. お褒めのお言葉を給う。(古風)
To give words of praise.
召す is the honorific/respectful form of many different verbs as the chart shows.
Transitive | 買う; 呼び寄せる; 風呂を使う; 食う・飲む; 着る・履く; 年をとる; 風邪を引く |
Intransitive | 乗る; 気に入る |
Examples
84. お気に召しましたか。
Are you pleased with it?
85. お風呂を召す。
To use the bathtub.
86. 天国へ召される。
To go to heaven/to be called to heaven.
Word Note: 召される is a slightly more polite version of 召す and may replace なさる.
87. 花を召しませ。
Buy flowers.
88. 浴衣をお召しになる。
To wear a yukata.
Cultural Note: A 浴衣 is a thin kimono worn in the summertime.
89. ご酒はお召しになりますか。
Will you be drinking alcohol?
Word Note: Notice how お酒 is replaced by ご酒(しゅ).
90. 彼は風邪を召されました。
He caught a cold.
91. 馬にお召しになる。
To ride a horse.
In this lesson, we will return our focuses to the phrase ~ために once more. This time, we will learn how this phrase can be preceded by the particle が instead of the usual particle の when after nominal phrases. In doing so, we will look at three different patterns.
In the past, the particles が and の shared far more interchangeability than they do today. It was once possible to use が to mark an attribute to the same degree の does today. Nowadays, this is limited to particular words (mostly place names) and grammatical structures. As が’s use with ~ために in this fashion is a given, below are a handful of examples found in words still used commonly today.
i.
我
が
家
One’s home/family
ii.
自由
が
丘
Jiyūgaoka
iii.
鬼
ヶ
島
Onigashima (Island of Ogres)
Terminology Note: As indicated by the title of this section, this use of ga in linguistic terms is referred to as the 連体修飾格 (adnominal modifier case).
When ~がために directly follows a noun, it is essentially the same as ~のために. The only difference is that ~がために is literary and is never used in the spoken language. Other aspects of a sentence also tend to be old-fashioned when it is used. Depending on what kind of noun precedes it, ~がために can either mark an objective or a cause/reason.
1.
誰
が
為
に
株
は
上
がる。
For whom do stocks rise?
Word Note: 誰が為 should not be read as だれがため. 誰 was originally た, and this pronunciation is preserved in this expression.
2.
何
がために
生
きているのかを
知
らずに
盲目的
な
日送
りをしていた。
I was blindly living my days not knowing what I was living for.
3.
遠
く
京師
を
離
れていたので、
玄機
がために
力
をいたすことができなかった。
Since (he) was far away from the capital, he was unable to render assistance to Genki.
From
魚玄機
by
森鷗外
.
Word Note: 京師 is an outdated term that can refer to old capitals of countries which use(d) Chinese characters. Thus, in context it can refer to cities such as Beijing, Xi’an, Seoul, Kyoto, etc.
4.
彼
は
父
の
貧
しきがために、
充分
なる
教育
を
受
けなかった。
Due to his father being poor, he did not receive a proper education.
Grammar Notes:
1. 貧しき is the original 連体形 of the adjective 貧しい. With ~がために following, the phrase 父の貧しき is essentially nominalized, and the use of the particle の is simply for marking the subject of a subordinate clause.
2. なる is the original 連体形 of the adjectival noun 充分だ.
5.
亡
き
者
の
為
の
仏事
ではなく、まさに
我
が
為
の
仏事
であった。
Instead of it being a memorial service for the deceased individual, it was like it was a memorial service for myself.
6.
当初
の
考
には、
我
が
日本国
の
不文不明
なるは
教育
のあまねからざるがためのみ、
教育
さえ
行届
けば
文明富強
は
日
を
期
していたすべし、との
胸算
にてありしが、さて
今日
にいたりて
実際
の
模様
を
見
るに、
教育
はなかなかよく
行
きとどきて
字
を
知
る
者
も
多
く、
一芸一能
に
達
したる
専門
の
学者
も
少
なからずして、まずもって
前年
の
所望
はやや
達
したる
姿
なれども、これがために
国
の
文明富強
をいたしたるの
証拠
とては、
甚
だ
少
なきが
如
し。
My initial thought was that the illiterate and ignorant state of our nation Japan was solely due to education not being widespread and that so long as education were scrupulous, we would someday attain a rich and powerful civilization; however, looking at our actual current state, though education has come along well with many having learned to read and there being far from few expert scholars gifted in their particular skills, and though this is the rather accomplished state of what I had previously desired in the first place, it all seems far too little as the evidence for our nation having accomplished forging a rich and powerful civilization.
Grammar Notes:
1. The particle は is seen directly after the 連体形 of the auxiliary verb ~なり—なる. In Classical grammar, it is possible for は to directly follow the 連体形 of a verbal phrase. The Modern Japanese equivalent of ~なるは would be ~であることは. Thus, the verbal phrase is nominalized, allowing ~がため(に) to follow.
2. The particle に is deleted in ~がために due to the presence of the particle のみ.
3. あまねからざる is the 連体形 of the negative form of the Classical adjective あまねし 【遍し/普し】, which did not survive into the modern language. It translates into Modern Japanese as 広く行き渡っている.
4. The auxiliary verb ~べし has various meanings, but in this passage, it is equivalent to できるだろう.
5. ~にてありしが = ~であったが.
6. The ~たる in 達したる and いたしたる is the 連体形 of ~たり, the original 終止形 of the auxiliary verb ~た.
7. なれども = であるけれども.
8. Modern Japanese equivalents of ~が如し include ~と同じだ, ~のようだ, and ~の通りだ. Grammatically speaking, the が used in this expression is the same as in ~がため(に).
9. The Modern Japanese equivalent of ~とて is ~と言っては.
In the grammar pattern ~んがために, ~ん is the contracted form of the Classical auxiliary verb ~む, which is the predecessor of the auxiliary verbs of volition ~よう and ~う. Here, ~ん is in the 連体形, which means the verbal phrase it is a part of functions as a noun. As such, ~がために attaches normally. Although unnatural, a literal translation into Modern Japanese of this pattern would be ~ようとすることのために.
As is the case with ~よう and ~う, ~ん follows the 未然形 of verbs. To visualize how this pattern connects to each kind of verb, below is a conjugation chart.
/eru/-Ichidan Verb | 得る + んがために → | 得んがために (to gain) |
/iru/-Ichidan Verb | 見る + んがために → | 見んがために (to look) |
/u/-Godan Verb | 救う + んがために → | 救わんがために (to save) |
/ku/-Godan Verb | 築く + んがために → | 築かんがために (to build) |
/gu/-Godan Verb | 稼ぐ + んがために → | 稼がんがために (to earn) |
/su/-Godan Verb | 示す + んがために → | 示さんがために (to show) |
/tsu/-Godan Verb | 保つ + んがために → | 保たんがために (to maintain) |
/nu/-Godan Verb | 死ぬ + んがために → | 死なんために (to die) |
/mu/-Godan Verb | 読む + んがために → | 読まんがために (to read) |
/ru/-Godan Verb | 成る + んがために → | 成らんがために (to become) |
Suru (Verb) | する + んがために → | せんがために (to do) |
Kuru | くる + んがために → | こんがために (to come) |
Conjugation Note: 来んがために is essentially not used. In fact, only one search result appears for it in Google. Ex. 20 is an adaptation of this search result. It is worth noting that although this is by no means ungrammatical or necessarily unnatural to say, it is perplexing how this verb in particular is not seemingly used despite it being necessarily mentioned in conjugation notes for this very pattern—both for native learner and foreign learner use.
The basic sentence pattern used for this expression is “A + Vんがために + B.” Whereas “A + Vために + B” either expresses a certain reason/objective A to bring about a certain outcome B,” this pattern emphasizes that B is the only means by which objective A can be accomplished. Thus, it is highly nuanced.
However, it is most often not the case that the speaker would have thought long and hard about the situation to come to the conclusion that is being expressed. Rather, the situation being described is very much “last resort” in feel, and the circumstance the experiencer is facing is mostly a very difficult and/or abnormal dilemma.
This, though, doesn’t mean that the situation overall must be dire or necessarily pressing. There is an almost spontaneous realization on the part of the experiencer that A must be done for B to happen. In other words, the action described in A is usually impulsive and not indicative of planning. A can also be described as a breakthrough action that disrupts the status quo.
As was the case for the uses of ~ために we learned early on in our studies, the particle に can be seen omitted as is often the case for this particle in the written language. This expression can also be seen as ~んがための when used to modify another nominal phrase (Ex. 7).
7.
自分
の
利益
を
得
んがための
発言
では、
人
の
心
を
動
かせない。
You can't move people's hearts with words only for one's personal interest.
8.
彼
は
夢
を
実現
させんがため、
上京
した。
He moved to Tokyo to fulfill his dreams.
Sentence Note: The act of fulfilling his dreams is not what’s impulsive or last minute about the situation. Rather, it is implied that there must have been a sudden breakthrough on the will of the subject to finally break the status quo and pack his things and head for Tokyo.
9.
麻薬反対
という
思
いを
示
さんがために、
彼
はあらゆる
方法
を
試
みた。
He tried out every method to show his thoughts for being against drugs.
10.
我
が
子
の
無罪
を
証明
せんがために、
必死
で
証拠
を
探
そうと
誓
った。
I vowed to search desperately for proof to prove his own child's innocence.
11.
彼
は
子供
を
救
わんがために、
命
を
落
とした。
He lost his life trying to save the child.
12.
彼
は、
漢検
1
級
に
合格
せんがために、
毎日必死
で
頑張
った。
He did his best every day desperately to pass the Kanken Level 1.
13.
国会
で
法案
を
通
さんがため、
首相
は
根回
し
工作
を
開始
した。
The Prime Minister began to pull strings to get the bill through the Diet.
14.
社長
にならんがために、
色々
な
裏工作
をしていたといわれる。
It is said that (he) did all sorts of maneuvering behind the scenes to become the company president.
15. ただ
一流大学
に
入
らんがために
勉強
している
人
が
多
い。
There are a lot of people that are studying to just get into a first-rate university.
16.
民衆
を
教育
せんがために、
多
くの
学校
は
建
てられたのである。
Many schools were built to educate the masses.
17. 支配者が権力を保たんがために、強硬手段を取った。
The ruler took strong measures to maintain power.
18.
我々
は、
世界
の
将来
に
平和
と
繁栄
を
築
かんがために
努力
している。
We are endeavoring to build peace and prosperity to the future of the world.
19. ある
時
は、その
子供達
の
持
つ
欠点
を
正
しく
直
さんがために、また
足
らざるものを
補
わんがために
話
の
題材
を
選
ぶこともあれば、その
心持
で
語
られるでありましょう。
Other times, if there were moments in which to choose the theme of the story to properly correct the shortcomings of the children or to supplement what they lacked, I would surely be able to narrate with that disposition.
From
童話
を
書
く
時
の
心
by
小川未明
.
20.
〇
の
韻字
を
持
って
来
んがために、
無理
にこじつけたもので
品
を
落
としたようです。
It seems I lowered the quality (of the poem) by unreasonably straining it to bring about the rhyming word #.
Word Note: 韻字 are characters placed at the end of a stanza in Chinese prose to add rhyme.
21.
漢文
における「
句読法
」は、
中国文
を
日本語式
に
読
まんがために
日本
で
考案
されたものである。
The “punctuation rules” found in Kanbun were devised in Japan to read Chinese works in a Japanese style.
Culture Note: Kanbun is Classical Chinese literature primarily written by Japanese people.
22.
生活費
を
稼
がんがために
一生懸命
(に)
働
いている。
I am working my utmost to earn my living expenses.
23.
即
ち、イエス
様
は
死
なんがために
死
に
得
べき
状態
を
取
り、
我
らと
同
じ
血肉
を
具
えたのである。
In other words, Jesus took a state in which death was possible to die, therefore possessing flesh and blood just like us.
Sentence Note: It is not implied that Jesus took human form impulsively to die. However, atonement of humanity’s sin via death was a predicate to Jesus’ descent, and taking a form in which it was possible to die was the only means available, which is why 死なんがために is used.
24.
神様
は、
己
を
見
んがために
愛
を
創造
せざるを
得
なかった。
God had no choice but to create love to assess Himself.
Sentence Note: Similarly to Ex. 23, it is not necessarily the case that God’s action in B is a result of A being an impulsive drive. Although this may be true, A should be interpreted more so as B being the only result that could fulfill objective A.
~がために may also be seen directly after verbal expressions in either the non-past or past tense. This is also old-fashioned and almost entirely limited to the written language. Its purpose is to express an atypical reason/cause that brings about an atypical result. It intrinsically does not imply either the reason/cause or the result is a good or bad thing, but it is very subjective in nature due to が functioning as an intensifier. This is because of the exhaustive-listing function of が. In other words, this is a very literary yet emphatic version of the cause marking ~ために.
Grammaticality speaking, the verb phrase that precedes が is essentially nominalized. Although the 連体形 of a verb alone is enough to modify ~ために, the presence が renders it as a noun.
25.
融資
を
受
けてしまったがために
差
し
押
さえが
目前
に
迫
ってきた。
The seizure (of my assets) came close at hand due to the financing I had received.
26.
彼女
は、
太腿
に
脂肪
が
付
いてしまったがために、
着
たいものが
着
られないという
切
ない
経験
を
味
わった。
She tasted the painful experience of not being able to wear what she wanted because she had put on fat in her thighs.
27.
人
に
馴
れてしまったがために、
周囲
を
警戒
しなくなって
捕食者
に
食
べられてしまったり、
放
しても
帰
ってきてしまったりするという
鳥
も
少
なくない。
There are also far from few birds who get eaten by predators because they are no longer wary of their surroundings or who end up returning even after being released because they became too tame with people.
28.
彼
は
殺人犯
の
息子
に
生
まれてしまったがために
日陰
の
人生
を
歩
まざるを
得
なかった。
He had no choice but to go through life in the shadows due to being born as the son of a murderer.
~がために can also be seen as an emphatic yet literary version of the objective marking ~ために. This usage is less common than the one above, so much so that it is sometimes perceived as a mistake. Using it broadly as a replacement of ~ために, however, would be a misuse of this pattern. Ultimately, the tone given off by this use of ~がために is somewhat “matter-of-fact” but in a very composed and authoritative manner.
29. この
海
が
見
たいがために、
毎朝起
きる
気
がするのだった。
(She) felt the urge to wake up in the morning to see the ocean.
From 光の雨 by
立松和平
.
30.
私
が、
何
か
子供達
に
向
ってお
話
をするとしたら、まず、それがどんな
子供達
であるかを
知
ろうとするでしょう。
次
に、いくつ
位
であるかを
見
ます。それによって
話
を
選
び、よく
分
るようにしたいがためです。
If I were to narrate something to children, I would first try to know what kind of children they are. Then, I would see how old there are. I’d choose my story based on that so that they can understand well.
From
童話
を
書
く
時
の
心
by
小川未明
.
31.
故
に
子
を
教
えるがためには
労
を
憚
るべからず、
財
を
愛
しむべからず。
Therefore, one mustn’t have scruples about the work or be attached to ones riches in order to teach a child.
From
教育
の
事
by
福沢諭吉
.
32. その
青年
は毎日、「
日本語
の
本
」を
読
みたいがために
青空文庫
を
利用
している。
That young man uses Aozora Bunko every day to read “Japanese books.”
Sentence Note: The ~がために used in this sentence can be seen as marking both a reason and an objective.
Reason, as we have learned, is expressed with various grammar points such as the particles から and ので, nouns such as 理由 and 訳, as well as several other phrases like ~ため. Each means of expressing reasons presents the learner even more ways to nuance one’s speech to better convey reason. In this lesson, we will learn about even more phrases whose basic understandings are tied to the notion of reason. These words are 故, 所以・由縁, 謂れ, and 由.
At its most basic understanding, 故 means “reason.”
1.
故
あって
同行
することになった。
It has been decided for a certain reason that we accompany the other.
2.
故
ない
侮辱
はせん。
I shan’t make a senseless insult.
3. そう
批判
されるのも
故無
しとしない。
Being criticized as such is also not without reason.
Phrase Note: 故無しとしない can be paraphrased as それなりの理由がある.
4.
地
は
何
の
故
を以って
東南
に
傾
くや。
Wherefore doth the Earth tilteth to the southeast?
However, this is not its only meaning. Depending on the expression, it may be synonymous to the word 由緒 meaning “history” as in having a connection to something.
5.
故
ある
遺品
を
捨
てられまい。
I cannot possibly discard items full of history to me that were left to me.
It may also be translatable as “circumstance(s)” and “appearance.”
6. その
故
ありげな
美
しい
姿
、この
世
のものではないようにも
思
える。
That suggestive, beautiful appearance, it seems as if it’s not of this world.
~ゆえに
The grammar pattern ~ゆえに, which is created with the noun 故 from above and the purpose-marking に, is used to express either a positive or negative cause which brings about a typically negative yet atypical result.
This pattern is quite old-fashioned, but it is occasionally still found. What is most complicated about it is how it connects with other parts of speech.
Nouns | N + ゆえ(に) N + がゆえに N + のゆえに N + である(が)ゆえに |
形容詞 | Adj + (が)ゆえに |
形容動詞 | Adj. N + である(が)ゆえに Adj. N + なゆえに |
Verbs | V + (が)ゆえに |
It is possible to see (が)ゆえに follow conjugatable parts of speech in both the non-past and the past tense. It may even be seen after the auxiliary verb ます. However, it is mostly seen after nouns where it exhibits the most variety in appearance.
It is often the case that the speaker relates to the situation somehow. Even if the sentence is in the third person, the speaker still relates to the subject of the sentence. This pattern is also used in academic papers as an objective marker of reason. In an academic setting, the effect that follows does not have to be limited to a negative circumstance, but outside academic settings, this is a requirement.
7.
未熟者
ゆえお
許
しください。
Please forgive me for I am a novice.
Sentence Note: The result of forgiving the speaker for being a novice may not seem like a negative circumstance, but the possibility of not being forgiven is a negative outcome, and it is this direness being expressed by the speaker that consists an unfavorable situation.
8.
女
であるがゆえに
受
ける
差別
の
構造
を
知
れば、もっと
楽
になると
思
い
込
んでいる
女性
たちがいる。
There are women who are (incorrectly) convinced that things will get easier so long as they know about the framework of discrimination that they receive for being women.
9.
女
であるゆえに
父親
の
財産
を
相続
できず
貧
しい
暮
らしを
強
いられる。
She is compelled to live in poverty, unable to inherit her father’s fortune for being a woman.
10. その
美貌
と
若
さのゆえに、
誤
ったイメージをもたれているように
思
われる。
Because of her youth and beauty, there is an incorrect image of her.
11.
若
いがゆえに
悪性
の
病気
であるとは
思
いもよらなかった。
Due to my being young, the thought of having a bad disease was inconceivable.
12.
男
ゆえに
敵
が
多
い。
My enemies I do have for being a man.
13.
愛
ゆえに
人
は
苦
しまねばならぬ。
For love people must suffer.
14. こういう
静
かなイケメンは、
静
かであるがゆえに、
多
くの
女性
が
見落
としている。
It is this kind of quiet good-looking guy that many women overlook due to his being quiet.
15.
生
き
急
ぐゆえに"
死
"が
接近
していることに
気
づかない。
It is because we live fast that we do not notice “death” approaching.
16. アライグマは、
野生動物
であるがゆえに、
捕獲
や
事故
を
免
れ、
成獣
になれる
確率
は
極
めて
低
い。
Raccoons, because they are wild animals, have an extremely low probability of evading capture and accidents and becoming adults.
17.
離婚
が
増
えたがゆえに
再婚
も
増
えているという
現実
はあるが、だからといって
誰
もが
簡単
に
次
の
結婚
を
決
められるわけではない。
Although there is the reality that remarrying is on the rise due to divorce having risen, it is not the case nonetheless that anyone can easily decide one’s next marriage.
18. それだけに、
聡明
なゆえに
何
かしらの
違和感
を
持
ちつつ
毎日
を
過
ごされているのでしょう。
For that reason alone, because you are wise, I’m sure you spend each feeling out of place somehow.
19.
日本
は、
島国
(の)ゆえに
他
から
大
きな
侵略
も
受
けず、
従
って
滅
びるかどうかという
深刻
な
試練
にも
遭
わずに
生
きてこられた
国
である。
Japan, as a result of being an island nation, is a country that hasn’t ever sustained a large invasion from the outside, and as a result has lived without facing the serious tribulation of perishing.
20.
受
け
継
いだ
罪
のゆえに
人
の
心
は
弱
く
信仰
が
欠
けてしまう。
It is because of the sin man has inherited that the heart is weak and also why one’s faith is lacking.
21.
伝説
の
魔獣
(である)がゆえに、
制御
できぬのである。
One cannot control it for it is a legendary beast.
22.
正義
と
愛
がゆえに
闘
う。
To fight for justice and love.
23.
糸
が
美
しいゆえに、その
刺繍
は
美
しい。
The embroidery is beautiful by virtue of the thread being beauty.
24.
美少女
は、
美
しいがゆえに、
悲惨
な
思
いをすることがある。
Beautiful girls often experience tragedy owing to their beauty.
25.
美
しさゆえに
愛
するのなら、
私
を
愛
さないでおくれよ。
If you are to love me by reason of my beauty, please do not live me.
事故
It is interesting to know that 事故 at one time had a native equivalent, which was literally ことゆえ. ことゆえ is a combination of 事 and 故, and the resultant combination brings about a nuance of “accident” or potential difficulties in the circumstances at hand.
26.
慣
れぬことゆえ、お
稽古頑張
って
下
さい。
As you are yet accustomed, please do your best in training.
27.
何分子供
のことゆえ、お
赦
しください。
Please forgive him as he is but a child.
28.
前世
に
行
った悪しき
事
ゆえに、そうした
苦難
を
経験
するに
値
することになるのである。
One becomes deserving of experiencing such hardship due to bad deeds one committed in previous lives.
故に
It is often the case that 故に is used as a sentence-initial conjunction when the previous clause ends in a verb or adjective. When this is done, 故に is translatable as “therefore.” A more emphatic version of this is それゆえ, which also translates as “therefore.”
29.
我思
う。
故
に、
我
あり。
I think. Therefore, I am.
30.
日本
の
風景
は
美
しい。ゆえに、
日本
の
歌
は
美
しい。
Japanese landscape is beautiful. Therefore, Japanese songs are beautiful.
31. それゆえ、
履歴書上
に、これまでの
仕事
に
関係
するとは
思
えない
脈絡
のない
資格
や
免許
が
列挙
されていたら、プラスになるどころか、マイナスにすらなりかねないのです。
Therefore, having a list of qualifications and licenses with seemingly no logical connection to the jobs you’ve had up to that point on your resume is likely to be a negative rather than a positive.
32. それゆえ
男
はその
父母
を
離
れ、
妻
と
結
び
合
い、
二人
は
一体
となるのである。
Therefore, shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.
何故
Although no longer used in the spoken language, 何ゆえ is in fact a way to say “why.” It is akin to the somewhat old-fashioned English expression “wherefore.”
33.
世界
は
何
ゆえ
核
の
炎
に
包
まれたのか
Why was it that the world was enveloped in the flames of nuclear weaponry?
34.
何
ゆえ
小説
を
書
くのか。
Wherefore does one write novels?
35.
以後充分
に
気
をつけますゆえ、お
許
し
下
さいまし。
As I will pay attention moving forward, I ask that you please forgive me.
Sentence Note: This sentence would have been heard in the late 1800s and early 1900s but would be viewed as extremely old-fashioned.
36. これを
機会
に、
役社員一同新
たな
気持
ちで
社業発展
に
全力
を
尽
くす
所存
でございますゆえ、
何卒
ご
高承
の
上
、より
一層
のご
厚誼
を
賜
りますようお
願
い申し上げます。
With this opportunity, we intend to do our utmost in the company’s development with a new sense of unity with all executive staff and works. As such, upon your kind affirmation, we ask that you bestow us with more of your kindness and support.
Sentence Note: Ex. 36, as well as Ex. 37, are examples of honorific speech utilizing ゆえ in a way that is still used. Indicative of the written language, the particle に is omitted.
37.
年々様々
な
食材
の
値段
が
高騰
する
状況
が
続
いておりますゆえ、
全体的
な
価格
の
見直
しをせざるをえない
状況
となっております。
Due to the continued state of the prices of various foodstuffs steeply rising year by year, we are compelled to do an overall price revision.
~がために
~がために is very similar to ~(が)ゆえに. As we learned in the previous lesson, it too is old-fashioned and limited almost entirely to the written language, and it similarly expresses an atypical reason/cause that brings about an atypical result, but neither the cause nor the result have to be negative in connotation in any way. Although this ought to make it more objective, because ~ために is already objective, the use of the particle が makes the grammar pattern emphatic and consequently subjective. With ~がために, it is never the case that the speaker is speaking from experience or sense of sympathy, nor is it used with the first person. Due to its subjectivity, it is also not seen in academic settings.
38.
当選
したいがために
看板
を
塗
り
替
える
人
は
信用
できない。
I cannot credit people who change their policies to get elected.
39.
若
いがために、
社会人
としての
経験
が
浅
くなりがちです。
Because they are young, there is a tendency that their experiences as working adults is shallow.
Both 所以 and 由縁 are read as ゆえん, which is a contraction of ゆえなり, which is Classical Japanese for “is the reason.” Each respective spelling conjures up different nuances of the noun 故 as an effect. 所以 is used to mean “reason/cause” whereas 由縁 is used to mean “origin/connection/history” and is synonymous with other words like 由緒 and 由来. Neither words are particularly used in the spoken language.
40.
所以
など
行方知
らず。
Cause is nowhere to be found.
41.
職人
が「
技術
は
見
て
盗
め」と
言
う
所以
だろう。
The worker would say to look at a technique and steal it.
42.
死
する
所以
は
即
ち
生
ずる
所以
なり。
The reason for dying, in other words, is the reason for living.
Grammar Note: なり is the basic copula verb of Classical Japanese.
43.
人
の
人
たる
所以
を
学
ぶ。
To study the reason for people being people.
Grammar Note: The particle の here is equivalent to the particle が, being used to mark the subject of a subordinate clause. Also, the auxiliary verb たる is a classical copula verb that is still seen in old-fashioned expressions such as Ex. 43.
44.
地名
の
由縁
を
尋
ねる。
To ask about what’s related to the place name.
45.
地名
の
由縁
を
知
ることで、
身
を
守
る
第一歩
になるかもしれない。
By knowing the affinity of place names, we might make the first step to protecting ourselves.
謂れ comes from the 未然形 of 言われる, the passive form of the verb 言う. It is used to mean either “reason/cause” or “history/origin.” It is seen frequently in the expression ~いわれはない meaning “there is no reason for.”
46.
誰
もこんな
目
に
遭
う謂れはない。
There is no reason for anyone to go through such suffering.
47.
私
には、こんな
運命
を
引
き
受
けなければならないいわれはない。
There is no reason for why I must accept such a fate as this.
48.
謂
れのない
噂
や
悪質
な
書
き
込
みによって
誹謗中傷
される。
To be slandered by baseless rumors and malicious posts.
49.
周辺
に
点在
している
史跡
や謂れのある
土地
を
巡
りました。
I went around to see historical landmarks and places with history that dot the area.
由 is a multifaceted word whose basic meaning is also “reason/cause.” However, it may also mean “method” such as in the set phrase in Ex. 53 and “piece of information,” which is seen in Ex. 51 and Ex. 52, which are examples of how it is still used in respectful speech. Otherwise, the word is truly relegated to set expressions.
50.
由
ありげな
問答
を
投
げかける。
To throw meaningful dialogue.
51. この
由
、お
伝
えください。
Please convey this (to the individual).
52. お
元気
との
由
、
何
よりです。
I am glad to hear that you are doing well.
53.
知
る
由
もない。
There is no way of knowing.
In Japanese grammar, there is an odd grammatical pattern involving ク. Presumably unrelated to く in adjectival conjugation, the く in this lesson is found in more archaic expressions. All of these expressions grammatically speaking are peculiar, which makes this a very interesting topic to address.
It is thought that the く to be discussed in this lesson comes from the archaic noun あく, which may be found in Modern Japanese slightly altered in the verb 憧れる, which may still show up in old-fashioned and or dialect speech as あくがれる. It is believed to have been a dummy noun in the same way こと is today. With that being the case, you would expect verbs to be in the 連体形 when used with it. However, because the language then hated sequential vowels so much, there would be various sound changes to reduce the sequence into one vowel.
いう + あく → いわく | する + あく → すらく | 安き + あく → 安けく | ぬ + あく → なく |
There was also an ending for recollection, ~き, that could be used with あく. When in the 連体形, ~き became ~し. However, because it is believed that the i vowel was actually different--transcribed as ï--the combination of the two resulted in しく. This あく is also supposed to be the く in いづく (where?).
As you can imagine its usage in Modern Japanese is rather limited. In fact, it's been a somewhat fossilized state ever since the Heian Period, which was a long time ago. And, you get mistakes in usage such as the following. These mistakes were made early on be speakers and have been passed down as such. All of the words coined from misuse minus 恐るらくは are used in limited contexts. 恐らく is actually somehow the current form.
Misuse | Should be | Misuse | Should be |
惜しむらくは (Sadly) | 惜しまくは | 望むらくは (What I wish for) | 望まくは |
疑うらくは (In doubting) | 疑わくは | 恐るらくは (Perhaps) | 恐らくは |
Aside from these phrases from misuse, there are other examples used in Modern Japanese. Below is a somewhat exhaustive list of these phrases.
曰く | In saying; reason | Literary | 体たらく | Predicament | Not just 書き言葉 |
老いらく | Old age | Literary | すべからく | By all means | Literary |
願わく{は・ば} | I pray that | Literary | 思惑 | Speculation; expectation | Not just 書き言葉 |
漢字 Notes:
1. すべからく may be written as 須(ら)く. This is a combination of すべき in its 連体形 すべかる + あく.
2. 思惑’s more traditional spelling is 思わく as 惑 in this spelling is 当て字.
3. 願わくは may also rarely be spelled as 希わくは in literature.
Examples
This section will purposely avoid uses of ク語法 no longer relevant to Modern Japanese. Remember that aside from the occasional set phrase and 恐らく that this grammar pattern is very 書き言葉的.
1. 古人曰く勝て兜の緒を締めよ。
The ancient say defeat and fasten the chords of your armor.
Idiom Note: 兜の緒を締めよ also has the meaning of not letting your guard down.
2. 法はすべからく守るべし。
The law ought to be protected.
3. 老いらくの恋
An old man's love
4. 世間の思惑通りには生きていけない。
I mustn't live as the world expects me to.
5. 恐らくあの猫が隣の川に溺れたと思う。
I think that that cat perhaps drowned in the river next to us.
6. なんという体たらくだ!
What a mess you've gotten yourself into!
7. 願わくは一流企業に就職したい。
I pray I get hired into a first class company.
8. 願わくは京都に居を構えたい。
I wish to set up residence in Kyoto.
9. 願わくは御名を尊まれんことを。
I pray that your name be honored.
Word Note: 願わくは is typically used in prayer like expressions, and due to the mistaken form 願わくば, it may sometimes have a meaning closer to 願いが叶うならば.
As is evident in the modern examples, it has lost its productivity as a grammatical pattern for a long time, but you should get a sense at least of what role it once had (presumably in a larger range of expressions).
~しめる is an old-fashioned causative ending that is still used infrequently in Modern Japanese. Aside from this, the causative endings once were used to show extreme politeness, and this usage is preserved in old-fashioned speech. This lesson will be very short. So, feel grateful.
The auxiliary verb ~しめる is limited to only a handful of verbs which include する, なす, いう, ある, 知る, and じる/ずる-する verbs. This is not an exhaustive list, but due to its archaic nature, its use is very limited, and it is suggested that you only attempt to use it with verbs you see, how you see it used, and in formal writing.
1.
環境
を変化せしめる
要因
は
温室効果
ではない。(書き言葉)
The primary factor of changing the environment is not because of the greenhouse effect.
2. それは、国民の然らしめるところだ。(ちょっと硬い書き言葉)
That is a part where the citizens bring about it.
Variant Note: 然らしめる = そうさせる.
3. 日本語の素晴らしさを世界に知らしめよう。(ちょっと古風)
Let’s inform the world of the awesomeness of Japanese.
に言わせ(れ)ば・に言わしめれば to mean "if you ask...". As expected, the latter is more literary.
4a. 私に言わせれば、その計画はいい考えじゃないと思います。
4b. 私に言わしめれば、その計画はよい考えではないと思っております。(謙譲語: ちょっと古風)
If you ask me, I think that plan isn't a good idea.
知らしめる is occasionally used in Modern Japanese as a strongly nuanced way of saying 知らせる・認知させる.
5. ほら君はのまれている 無責任な言葉を知らしめているだけさ。
Look at you overwhelmed; I'm just making irresponsible remark known.
From DIV作の「線路」
Another important combination is たらしめる, which is actually equivalent to にする and is the combination of the 未然形 of a classical yet very emphatic copula verb たり and ~しめる. This たり should not be confused with the particle たり, which has a very different origin. You will see this again in future conjugations and grammar points.
6. 我が社を世界のトップたらしめる。(Formal; literary)
We will make our company at the top of the world.
7. わが国は、遠くない過去の 一時期 、 国策 を 誤 り、 戦争 への道を 歩 んで国民を 存亡 の 危機 に 陥 れ、 植民地支配 と 侵略 によって、多くの 国々 、とりわけアジア 諸国 の人々に 対 して 多大 の 損害 と 苦痛 を与えました。私は、 未来 に 誤 ち 無 からしめんとするが 故 に、 疑 うべくもないこの 歴史 の事実を 謙虚 に受け 止 め、ここにあらためて 痛切 な 反省 の意を表し、心からのお 詫 びの気持ちを 表明 いたします。また、この歴史がもたらした 内外 すべての 犠牲者 に深い 哀悼 の 念 を 捧 げます。
Our country caused great pain and damage to many countries, particularly to all peoples of Asia, by colonial rule and invasion, driving citizens to a state of life and death crisis by mistaking national policy and walking down a road of war in a period of the not so distant past. In order to rid such mistakes in the future, I humbly accept these irrefutable facts of history, express here again bitter remorse and my heartfelt apology. Again, please accept my sincere and deep condolences to all victims this history brought.
This excerpt from an apology for past human violations by Japan in World War II by ex. Prime Minister Murayama provides insight to well-crafted writing. The passage begins with the Classical attribute marker function of が. 無からしめんとする is a combination 無い, -しめる, the Classical volitional auxiliary verb -む, and とする. Together, the phrase is equivalent to なくさせようとする, which is translated in the passage with が故に as "in order to rid".
Formal, Semi-Classical Text
Below is an excerpt from a piece by 川端康成. This is a report on the mental health of a man who has been charged with the murder of two women. Here below is part of the report, and notice how せしめる used to be せしむる in the 連体形.
8. 「 智能検査 の成績は 極 めて 優良 を示している。一般知識、計算能力、論理選択、正文、 充填 、構文、定義について行いたる成績は、全然標準点と同一である。
記憶力は自己の
経歴
につき誤りなく、記名力の試験は表に示す
如
く、対語試験に
於
て全て正当数を得、
殊
に無関係対語試験に於てさえ完全に再生することを得るは、
蓋
し優良なるものと言わなければならない。
故に記憶、記名の
障礙
は認められず、従って記憶を
減退
せしむる精神的原因を有しないことを証明するのである。...」
"He has shown great excellence in the I.Q test. In his assessments carried out in general knowledge, numeric ability, logical choice, official text, loading artillery, syntax, and defining, he completely meets the standard marks on all these things.
There is no mistake in his memory about his own record, and his signature test was as like it appeared on the front, and he got all the right numbers in the antonyms test, and given that he completely play backed his performance on the rather unrelated antonyms test, one would have to say that he is indeed superb.
Thereupon, no handicaps can be found in his memory or inscription, so we testify that he doesn't have a mental cause letting down his memory...."
From 散りぬるを by 川端康成.
Word Note: Official text (正文) would have been written in 漢文 at the time.
Grammar Notes:
1. As you should expect, 得るは would be 得るのは in more modern Japanese. At one time, the 連体形 could allow verbs to be used as nominals just as in the context above.
2. Notice also that the 連体形 of ~た used to be たる rather than just た.
~させる, ~せる, and ~しめる may show extreme politeness. This usage is very rare, and it is seen frequently in classical texts. They are often followed by - 給 う. In Classical Japanese, 給う is spelled as 給ふ. This is not something you have to remember, but old expressions/patterns like this can easily be found in set phrases such as the second example.
9.
大統領
も
騒
がせ
給
う。(とても古風)
The president was also in a panic.
10. み心のままになさしめ給へ。(Classical)
Do at your heart's desire.
11. 神
の
与
えたもうた
試練
。
A trial from God。
Sound Change Note: ~たまひたり → ~たまうた → ~たもうた.
12.
大臣
の
御里
に
源氏
の
君
まかでさせ
給
ふ。(Classical)
Lord Genji left for the home of the minister.
From the 源氏物語.
Interrogatives themselves are not so hard to understand or use. What you may not know is that there are even more less used interrogatives in Japan aside from the simple 誰, 何, いつ, どこ, and 何故.
なんらか
何 らか, also 何某 か, means "any" or "some". Both of these words are quantity words. So, they describe indefinite amounts. 何らか is the most common.
1.
何某
かの
金
A certain sum of money
2. 何らかの
影響
が出る。
To have some effect come out.
3. あなたの
申
し立てに何らかの
根拠
がありますか。
Do you have any evidence for your statement?
4. 何らかの
点
で
In some way or other
なにがし (某・何某) is a somewhat old-fashioned indefinite pronoun meaning "a certain". It equates in meaning to the Sino-Japanese prefix 某 read as ぼう. 某‐ can be used after proper nouns, place and time words. It is very similar to ある・或る. ある can be used to refer to something when one has no certainty of the actual matter/thing. When one uses 某‐, though, one knows exactly what the subject (matter) is. You just think it is best not to say it. It also sometimes gives the impression one is hiding information, especially when you overuse it. It goes well with more stiff 書き言葉. However, there are exceptions.
ある国 → 某国 | ある日 → 某日 | あるところ → 某所 | ある雑誌 → 某誌 |
ある会社 → 某会社 | ある先生 → 某教師 | ある省 → 某省 | ある月 → 某月 |
あるテレビ局 → 某テレビ局 | ある人 → 某氏 | あるタレント → 某タレント | ある高校 → 某高校 |
5. どこぞのなにがし
A certain someone from somewhere
The ら in 何ら is the same as in 彼ら. So, this is essentially the plural form of what. It is used as a more emphatic way of saying なにも. It may be used adverbially and nominally. It is not as common as なにも.
6. 何ら
不安
はないよ。
I have no fear.
7. 何ら
疑
いはない。
I have no doubt.
8. 何らの利益もないよ。
There's no profit/benefit whatsoever.
いずれ
いずれ, an alternative to どれ, is best translated as either "either", "both", or "sooner or later". These usages are distinguished easily from each other. If used as an adverb, it means, "sooner or later". If used with a particle such as も, it's like どれも to mean "either/both".
9.
何
れ分かるよ。
You'll understand sooner or later!
10. いずれ
改
めて
伺
います。
I will come again in the near future.
11. いずれ
劣
らぬ (Set phrase)
Equally competent
Interrogative Note: Do not get the impression that these are all of the possible interrogatives in Japanese. You will discover more, though more likely rarer, interrogatives as you continue to study Japanese. The examples below are just to show you what more is out there. You don't have to remember this stuff.
いずくんぞ
いずくんぞ, formally and formerly as いづくんぞ, means どうして. The following characters have been used to write it, but only the last is ever seen today: 悪・安・寧・焉.
12.
未
だ
生
を知らず、焉んぞ死を知らんや。
How would you know death if you've yet to know life?
13.
孔子
が『未だ人に
事
うること
能
わず、焉んぞ
能
く
鬼
に事えん。』と
曰
わく。
Confucius said, "How could you possibly serve the divine well if you can't even serve man well?"
14.
燕雀
安んぞ
鴻鵠
の
志
を知らんや。
How is that sparrows and swallows have greater will power than large birds?
15.
鶏
を
割
くに焉んぞ
牛刀
を用いん。
You don't need a butcher's knife to kill a chicken.
16.
王候
将相
寧んぞ
種
あらんや。
Why would nobles and shogun have seeds? (Any person can achieve through effort and luck)
17. いずくんぞ知らん。(Very old-fashioned)
How would you know?
那辺・奈辺
18. こ
ヽ
に
於
て
此
の問題の重大なることや、その
解決
の
那邊
にあるかを
叫
んで、
國民
の注意を
喚起
する
先覺者
の
奮發努力
が
甚
だ
望
ましい
次第
であります。
This is dependent on the much needed strenuous efforts of a pioneer who will alert the public's attention and strongly ask what the most important thing to this problem is and where the solution is.
From 國語國字 問題 by 福永恭助 .
Sentence Notes:
1. 那辺 is a rare interrogative equivalent to どこ・どの辺.
2. The example was written before simplification took place. Notice how many characters look different.
如何
如何 is sometimes read as いかん. This is a contraction of いかに. Both words are equivalent in meaning to どんなに. いかん is seen in formal situations, but its usage has continued to go down. いかに is used even less, but it survives in set phrases and in common usage in things like いかにも, which is used to show agreement in the same way as 全く and なるほど.
19. 人間、いかに生くべきか。
How should man live?
20. この件は如何致しましょうか。
What should we do with this case?
Interesting Dialect Phrases
If we include dialectical interrogative phrases, the number of such phrases in Japanese goes up a lot. Some phrases are localized to very small areas, but they're still interesting to look at. Below are phrases from 福島弁. Of these なして, also happens to be used in many other places in Japan. The rest are quite localized to the 東北 Region.
21. え、なして?
Wait, why?
22. なして泣いてるの?
Why are you crying?
The following phrases and translations are taken from the Wikipedia page on Fukushima Dialect.
There are some onomatopoeia that have entered Japanese through Chinese. They are typically rare, but they feature the mouth radical. The reason why they deserve special attention is that you may not realize at first hand that they're onomatopoeic.
Furthermore, we must understand that things Sino-Japanese tend to be literary. Because native onomatopoeia is so natural of spoken speech, we can expect Chinese onomatopoeic expressions to enter Japanese as rather technical words and may not quite be used or viewed as onomatopoeia. Some readily are viewed as such as seen in Ex. 1 and 2.
Nevertheless, it is certain that you will hardly find most of these spoken. These words are important, though, in higher class literature in which even today new Sino-Japanese expressions may be imported. For you as the advanced learner, running into new characters in this section may very well be the most beneficial and important thing to this lesson.
Examples
1. 呱呱
の
声
をあげる。
To make one's first cry.
2. {
呵呵
と・
大声
で}
笑
い
続
ける。
To continue to laugh loudly.
3.
嚠喨
たる音色
Clear and resounding tone/sound
4. 高評
嘖嘖
The resounding of high reputation
5.
嘻嘻
として遊ぶ。
To play cheerfully.
6.
喨々
たる響き
A reverberating echo
7.
喃々
と
駄弁
を
弄
する。
To babble and speak rubbish.
8.
鬼哭啾啾
The groaning of a dead spirit
9.
吶々
Faltering
Next are examples that really seem to have lost any sense of being onomatopoeic in Japanese. But if you think about some of them, you can still picture how they may relate to sound. For instance, 丁寧 (polite), which you will see has another spelling resembling the rest of these words, itself emulates the 'sound' of polite speech.
10.
咀嚼
Mastication
11.
咆哮
をあげる。
To let out a roar.
12. 叮嚀・丁寧
Polite
13.
呵責
・呵嘖
Accusation
14.
啖呵
を切る。
To declare defiantly.
15.
阿吽
の呼吸
The harmonizing, mentally and physically, of two parties engaged in an activity
Etymology Note: 阿吽 in the last example actually ultimately derives from the interjection Ohm from Sanskrit.
This pesky classical copular auxiliary is still occasionally used in Modern Japanese, and as you would expect, the title really does say all. First, we will discuss the so-called タル形容動詞 that are made with it, see how the true copular role it has manages to get used, and then focus on grammar topics relevant for high level Japanese proficiency tests such as the JLPT N1.
This defunct class of adjectival verbs have the limited bases と-連用形 and the たる-連体形. However, with more antiquated grammar, you can see the other bases. So, for completeness, the full base set is given below.
未然形 | 連用形 | 終止形 | 連体形 | 已然形 | 命令形 |
たら- | たり-・と | たり | たる | たれ- | たれ |
Like 形容動詞, the と-連用形 is used adverbially. The exact number of タル形容動詞 still used today is uncertain, but they are in decline. Their attributive base is also typically replaced with とした. However, in more formal writing, these adjectives pop up everywhere. Depending on the adjective, they may have acquired other legitimate attributive forms. For instance, you can use 主な and 主たる (principal/main).
Examples
1a. 主たる理由はこれです。(古風)
1b. 主な理由はこれです。(もっと自然)
The main reason is this.
2. 全然たる狂人
An absolute maniac
3. 然したる相違もない。
There isn't a special/particular difference.
4. {名立たる・有名な}観光地
A famous tourist spot
5.
面前
での
嘲笑
は
侮辱
の
最
たるものだ。
Scorn in one's presence is the extremity of insult.
6a. 最たる例 (古風)
6b. 最も
顕著
な例 (もっと自然)
Prime example
7.
堂々
{たる・とした}
姿
A magnificent figure
8.
断固
{たる・とした}決意
Resolute determination
9.
淡々
{たる・とした}
口調
で話す。
To speak in a cool tone.
10.
漠然
{たる・とした}不安
Vague anxiety
11.
眇
たる小会社
Insignificant firm
12.
純然
たる銀行
Pure and simple bank
13.
厳
たる事実
Harsh fact
14.
悠々
たる
大空
Endless sky
15.
鬱勃
たる
野心
Irresistible ambition
Base Note: Though they have no modern 終止形, when the need arises, the old たり-終止形 is replaced with the たる-連体形 followed by だ, giving たるだ.
16. 行政改革は号令のみで旧態依然たるだ。
The administrative reform is merely an order, and the (system) is still as the old state.
Archaism Note: There are still instances where the auxiliary copula verb たり is still used in Modern Japanese. As it is more emphatic, it often serves a role in formal yet serious situations. One instance is 日本よ国家たれ! (Japan, be a nation!) and its derivations.
This is a usage of above that is rarely seen but is used to emphatically emphasis a topic, and it is derived from the auxiliary たる and the adverbial/bound particle や.
17. その技術たるや、ものすごい。
The technique is terrific!
This pattern follows nouns, as you would expect, to show that a certain thing is suitable in situations such as having a certain responsibility or when one is outstanding for a certain role. Remember that what follows should show what form, role, or status something should be in to be what X or what たるもの follows.
18. 社会人たるもの、挨拶や時間を守ることなどができて当然でしょう。
It's only natural for a person of society to maintain salutations and time.
19. 紳士たるもの、強くなければならない。
A gentleman must be strong.
20. 政治家たるものは、失言があってはならない。
Politicians must not make gaffes.
21. 教師たるものは、言動に気をつけなければならない。
Teachers must pay attention to their behavior.
22. 大統領たるものは、
鋭利
な頭脳を持たなければならない。
A president must hold a sharp mind.
The conjunctive particle たりとも is equivalent to "not even" and is interchangeable with と言えども and ではあっても. It is really on the combination of the auxiliary たる + the conjunctive particle とも, which is why it's mentioned here. This pattern should follow a counter phrase that a small or indeterminate number. However, even if the number is one, if the counter phrase implies something big like a year or a ton, then this is not applicable.
23. 一字たりとも許さぬぞ。
I won't allow even a single letter (being wrong).
24. 1日たりとも忘れたことはありません。
I haven't forgotten even a single day.
25. 一年たりとも X
26.
一瞬
たりとも気を
抜
いてはいけないよ。
You mustn't lose focus for even a moment.
27. これからは1日たりとも日本語の練習を
怠
けてはいけない!
You mustn't slack off your Japanese practice for even a day from now on!
28. 1円たりとも無駄にしてほしくありません。
I don't wish for even a single yen to be wasted.
29. 1分たりとも遅れないようにしてください。
Please make it toward you are not late for even one minute.
30. 何人たりとも
Not one at all
Reading Note: 何人 in the last expression can be read as なにびと, なんびと, or なんぴと.
美化語 is the embellishment of words. 美化 means "beautification". 美化語, at its basic understanding, is making one's speech sound more refined. 美化語 elevates one's speech to a well-mannered style. Grammatically, it is neither 丁寧語 "polite speech" nor 敬語. However, it applies to 敬語 but is usually classified as 丁寧語. Several 美化語 phrases have come from traditional women's speech.
The honorific お- is generally added to words regardless of origin. Even foreign loanwords such as ズボン are used with お- in 美化語. Words like 勉強 can either be seen with お- or ご-. This is sure to cause more confusion. For most words, though, the general お- and ご- distinctions are maintained.
お- is used with native words and 和製語 (Sino-Japanese words made in Japan such as telephone). ご- is used only with Sino-Japanese words not used with お-. み-, おみ-, and おんみ- are used in words with religious or imperial importance.
お庭 | Garden | お天気 | Weather |
お飲み物 | Drinks | お菓子 | Sweets |
お食事 | Meal | お店 | Store |
お料理 | Cooking | ご祝儀 | Congratulatory gift |
ご機嫌 | Mood | ご挨拶 | Greeting |
ご結婚 | Marriage | ご連絡 | Contact |
When an honorific prefix is used, it may greatly alter the word.
飯(めし)⇒ご飯(はん) | Rice; meal |
汁(しる)⇒お汁(つゆ) | Soup; broth; dipping sauce* |
水⇒お冷 | Cold water |
うまい⇒おいしい | Delicious |
便所⇒お手洗い | Lavatory |
*: This definition is specific to お汁.
Note: Other forms of 美化語 include anything that euphemizes a phrase. Another word for this is 雅語. Since they are hard to pinpoint, they will not be discussed. Dictionaries will label 雅語 with 雅.
丁寧語 utilizes more polite nouns rather than honorific prefixes. In women's speech, however, honorific prefixes are commonly attached to everyday words. In more respectful language, this gender restriction disappears and sentence patterns conform.
1. お
水
を
飲
んでください。(美化語)
Please drink water.
2a. お
肉
をお
食
べにならないほうがよろしいと
思
いますわ。(美化語)
2b. お肉をお食べにならないほうがよろしいかと思われます。(敬語)
2c. お肉をお食べにならないほうがよろしいでしょう。(敬語)
I think that it best not to eat meat.
3. ご協力を頂くために
In order to receive your (honorable) cooperation (敬語)
If you overuse 美化語, you may sound sarcastic and pretentious. Some words like おトイレ, おコーヒー, おタバコ may be seen in other settings and in the speech of older women. No single description can make a good generalization of when and when not to do this.
It is rare to see loan words take honorifics, but when they do they normally take お-, but some like おビール and おソース are more common. Also, it is imperative to use these suffixes in reference to things during tea ceremonies.
美化語 from Women's Speech
Lots of words with お- used to only be used by women but are now used by everyone.
おかか | Finely chopped katsuobushi. | お欠き | Thin, dried, baked mochi |
お菜(かず) | Side dish | おから | Tofu residue |
お強(こわ) | Glutinous rice steamed with red beans | おじや | Rice gruel |
おつけ | Soups | おでん | Oden |
お腹(なか) | Stomach | おなら | Fart |
お萩(はぎ) | Rice ball coated with red beans | おまる | Potty |
Some words are almost always accompanied with honorific prefixes while some are always used with them. To find out whether a noun has to have an honorific prefix, you should first see if a word can be looked up in a dictionary without the prefix. If a word is 美化語-sensitive, most dictionaries will tell you.
Definition | Word | 仮名 | 美化語 | Always or Usually? |
Hot water | 湯 | ゆ | お湯 | Usually |
Tea | 茶 | お茶 | お茶 | Usually |
Rice/meal | 飯 | はん | ご飯 | Always |
Ghost | 化け | ばけ | お化け | Always |
Flattery | 世辞 | せじ | お世辞 | Always |
Stomach | 腹 | はら | お腹* | Always |
*: This word must have お- so it can be read as おなか.
4. お
湯
がこのボイラーから
出
ます。
The hot water comes out with this boiler.
5. その古い(お)
城
にはお
化
けが
出
るらしい。
It sounds like ghosts appear in that old castle.
6. お
世辞
を
言
う。
To give a compliment.
7. その(お)知らせを受け取らなかった。
I didn't receive that notice.
8. お
節
Osechi (a food served during New Year's)
9. お
節介
はよせ。
Mind your own business.
10. お腹が
痛
い。
My stomach hurts.
11.
腹
に
一撃
を
食
らう。
To receive a blow in the stomach.
12.
入浴後
はお
湯
を
流
して
捨
てておいてください。
You must run the (hot) water off after taking a bath.
At times when an honorific prefix is attached to a word there is a change in meaning. There is usually always a reasonable relationship between the two.
Meaning without お | Meaning with お | ||
Eight | 八つ | Snack |
おやつ |
Child | 子 | God's son |
み子 |
Master | 主人 | Someone's husband |
ご主人 |
Family | 家族 | Someone's family |
ご家族 |
Fishing | 釣り | Change (coins) |
お釣り |
To squeeze | 絞る | Hand towel |
お絞り |
Word Note: お 絞 り is an example of where an honorific prefix is added to 連用形 of a verb to refer to an object in relationship to the verb.
13. 8つある。
To have eight things.
14. おやつを
持
ってきた?
Did you bring a snack?
15. バナナはおやつに入りますか。
Are bananas in the snacks?
Culture Note: This is a cliche question that came about from a period when most schools did not allow snacks on field trips, and if they did, there was a 300 yen budget.
16.
釣
りに
行
きたい。
I like to go fishing.
17. お
釣
りは
結構
です。
Keep the change.
18a. 彼女
は
主人
づらをしている。
18b. 彼女
は
偉
ぶっている。(More natural)
18c. 彼女は偉そうに
振舞
っている。(More natural)
She acts like the boss.
19. ご
主人
はお
元気
ですか。
Is your husband all right?
The particle とて is the ancestor of ても and って. Then, we'll end with とも.
The case particle とて is equivalent to と言って・思って, and こととて means "with...being the reason". It is basically the older equivalent of ので・から.It is rather archaic. So, many speakers will use other things instead. In fact, it's even hard to find a Japanese person that even knows anything about とて. It is, though, preserved in dramas and what not, things that purposely retain older language.
1. 子供のこととてお許し下さい。 (文語)
Please forgive me with this being a childish thing.
2. 先を急ぐとて旅立った。
When I thought to hurry ahead, I set off on my journey.
3. 猿とて竜を殺そうとすれば自分が死ぬのは予想できるだろう。(More emphatic)
Even a monkey would know that you would surely die if you tried to kill the dragon.
4a. 不注意のこととて事故に
遭
った。(Old)
4b. 注意不足だったせいで事故に遭った。(Natural)
4c. 不注意ゆえ事故に遭った。(Literary)
I had an accident because of my carelessness.
5a.
念
を入れたこととてよい仕上がりだ。
5b. 念を入れただけあって、よい仕上がりだ。
Because we paid attention to detail, it's (now) a good finish.
6a. 山に登るとて出かけた。
6b. 山に登ると言って出かけた。(Natural)
When I said to climb at the mountain, he went out to.
とて is equivalent to だって and であっても and means "even (though)".
7. 犬とてそんなことは分かる。
Even dogs understand such a thing.
8. この事件とて例外ではありません。
Even this case is not exceptional.
9. どのような事件とても例外にはあらず。
There is no exception no matter what the situation.
10. 彼のためとて(何でも)やるというわけではない。
Even if it was for him, it's not to say that I would.
11. 彼女らとてやりたくてやったわけではない。
Even though they wanted to do it, it's not to say that they did it.
The conjunctive とて may attach to the 終止形 to mean "even if". The combinations -たとて and -だとて become -たって and -だって respectfully in the spoken language. からとて, which is normally replaced with からといって or からって, means "just because".
12.
疲
れたからとて
諦
めるわけにはいかぬ!
You just can't quit because you're tired!
13.
殴
られたとてかまわない。
It's fine even if it's struck.
14. たとえ反対されたとて、やり
抜
くぞ。
Even if you were to protest, you'd still carry through.
15. 本当かなあ、本当にノー・プロブレムかなあと心配だったのだが、さりとて他に道もないし、とにかくこれからウ ルデレまで行ってみるしかない。
I worried whether it were so, that there really was no problem; nevertheless, there is no other road, and we had no choice but to try to go from now to Uludere anyway.
From 雨天炎天―ギリシャ・トルコ辺境紀行― by 村上春樹.
Grammar Note: さり is the 終止形 of an ancient copular structure, which accounts for its odd appearance in comparison to modern structures. さりとて = そうだからといって.
Phrase | Meaning |
どんなに...とも | No matter... |
どれだけ...とも | No matter... |
Adverb + とも | At the least/most |
Repetition of とも | Whether |
とも | 語尾 emphasizing a strong statement |
たとえ + vol. +とも | Even if |
...なくともいい・かまわない |
Don't mind |
Value/degree + とも | At the very |
Classification Note: When used as a 語尾 it is classified as a final particle.
16. たとえ雨が降ろうともフットボールをする。
I play soccer even if it's raining.
17. どれだけ時間がかかろうとも、支持します。
I will support them no matter how long it takes.
18. 遅くとも3時までに来なさい。(From superior to inferior)
Come here by three at the latest.
19. 少なくとも10人は要ります。
We need ten people at the least.
20. 理解されなくともまったくかまわない。
I really don't care if its not understood.
21. 来るとも来ないとも分からない。
I don't know whether he's coming or not coming.
22. そうだとも!
Absolutely!
23. 特に英語を勉強しなくとも、楽勝だろうね。
Particularly English, i's probably a piece of cake for you even if you don't study.
The particle して has lost its steam, but it is still important to know how to use it.
1. みなして考えよう。
Let's all think together.
2. 二人して行事を阻止した。
The two together obstructed the event.
3. 親子四人して出かけてハワイに行った。
The family of four left and went to Hawaii.
4. 兄弟二人して天才だよ。
The two siblings are geniuses.
2. Used with the causative to mark the performer of the action. It is frequently used with the auxiliary verb -しめる. It may be used with を.
5. 私をして言わしめれば
If you ask me
6. 師匠を(して)降参させたとは大した腕前だ。
Making the master surrender is a considerable ability.
3. Shows the method by which something is done "with".
7a. 薬して治す。(Classical)
7b. 薬で治す。(Modern)
Heal with medicine.
8a. 御衣して耳を塞ぎ給ひつ (Classical)
8b. 彼女は職服で耳を覆った。(Modern)
She covered her ears with the robe.
From the 源氏物語
1. Following the 連用形 of an adjective or ~ず, the conjunctive particle して, while affirmative, raises something similar or opposite.
9. 荘厳にして優美な曲ですね。
It's a song that is solemn at the same time it is elegant isn't it?
10. 簡にして要を得る。
To be brief and to the point.
2. After the 連用形 of an adjective or ~ず, it is equivalent to "being".
11. 若くして名を成した。
I made a name for myself being young.
12. 彼女なくしては生きられない。
I can't live without her.
13. 努力せずして成功はないぞ。
There is no success without putting effort.
にして is equivalent to で or なのに meaning "while". にしては is slightly more emphatic. にしても is like "even if (you) were to". にしても may also be seen in more forceful contexts as にしろ・せよ. In casual speech, it may be にしたって.
14. 一瞬にして燃え尽きた。
It burned away at an instant.
15. いずれにしろ、すぐ戻ってくる。
I'll be back soon whether or not.
16. 食べないにしても、もっとやせるようになるというわけではない。
Even if you were to not eat, that doesn't mean you'll be able to get thinner.
17. 夏にしては、よく雨が降りました。
It's rained often for summer.
18. リーダーにしてからがこの始末だ。
Even if you're the leader, this is the end result.
Grammar Note: にしてからが is a slightly more contrasting variant of にして.
1. Strengthens the meaning of a starting point.
19. 彼は子供の時分からして優しかった。
He was nice since he was a child.
20. 若者の時からして
Since the time...was a youth
21. こんな初歩的なことからして理解できない。
You can't even understand (from) such an elementary thing.
22. 言うことからして生意気だよ。
You saying, for starters, is impudent.
Grammar Note: よりして may also be used in this way.
2. Shows continued basis of a decision and is equivalent to からみて and からいって--"based on/seeing from".
23. 彼女
は
顔
つきからして、
本当
に
美
しいですね。
Starting with her look, she's really beautiful, isn't she?
24. 状況
から
見
て、
経済危機
だ。
Seeing from the situation, it's an economic crisis.
25. 今の状況からして節電の必要がない。
Based on the current situation, it is not necessary to have brown-outs.
26. あなたの口ぶりからして諦める気があるようだ。
It appears you have intentions of giving up judging from your talk.
27. 彼はひらがなからして
読
めない。
He can't even read Hiragana.
28.
態度
からして、あいつは
失敗
したのだろう。
Based on his attitude, he probably failed.
29. どの
点
からみても
天才
だよ。
No matter what you look at, he's a genius.
30.
私見
から
言
って
From my personal opinion
3. Frequently followed by して, から may also strengthen the sense of "much less" when raising the most fundamental thing. In other words, it emphasizes the "not to mention" aspect of something.
31. 先生から(して)そんな
服装
では
困
ります。
Even for a teacher, that kind of attire is bothersome.
32. 学生からそんな
姿勢
はだめだよ。
That kind of attitude is bad even from students.
なくして means "if it wasn't for" and is seen after nouns.
33. 愛なくして、人間は存在できないだろう。
If it wasn't for love, humans would probably not exist.
34. 苦労なくして儲けなし。
No pain no gain.
The particle つ has been greatly reduced to hardly nothing in Modern Japanese, but it holds on it certain cases that this lesson will discuss.
The attributive case particle つ follows nominals to indicate the possessive and survives in few words such as 目毛・睫(まつげ) "eyelash". If you pay attention really closely to how this is actually used, you'll see that this particle seems to have a locative function as well.
1. 天津神
Heavenly gods
2.
滝
つ
瀬
とは川の流れの激しいところだ。
A takitsuse is a place where the current of a river is violent.
3. 天津日嗣
Imperial throne
4.
天
つ風
Winds of heaven
5.
秋入梅
Long fall rain
6a. 夏の
末
つ
方
6b. 夏の終わり (Modern)
The end of summer
7. 上枝・秀つ枝 (A 雅語)
Upper branch
Word Note: This last example is read as ほつえ. The opposite is 下枝, which although is normally read as したえだ should be read as しずえ as the true antonym. The ず is ultimately the particle つ.
8. おとつい
The day before yesterday
Word Note: In more standard Japanese, the last word becomes おととい. おとつい comes from a sound change of the Classical Japanese phrase 遠 つ 日 .
9. しかも
天日
のごとく若くかがやかしく、悩みと憂いが兆しかけた眉は
凛々
しさを加え、
豊葦原中国
にまた見ること叶わぬような美しい
壮夫
であった。
Moreover, he was a beautiful, splendid man that she could never see with the likes of Toyoashihara no Nakatsukuni, though he was young and bright like the heavenly sun in addition to the chivalry in his eyebrows which foretold sorrow and grief.
From 獅子・孔雀 by 三島由紀夫.
Word Note: 中国 is another example of this particle although it's in a name.
10. どのような
禍津日
も、わたくし共の恋の樹を枯らす力は
有
ちませぬ。
No calamitous day could have the power to cut down our tree of love.
From 獅子・孔雀 by 三島由紀夫.
The conjunctive particle つ shows two repetitive actions. It is normally only seen in set expressions.
11a. 彼は行きつ戻りつしながら待った。
11b. 彼は行き来しながら待った。(More modern)
He waited while walking to and fro.
12. 矯めつ眇めつ眺める。
To take a good look at something.
13a. 彼はとつおいつ思案する嫌いがある。
13b. 彼はあれやこれや思案する嫌いがある。(More common)
He has the tendency to ponder over this and that.
14. 夢のなかではいつも父と追いつ追われつして、親雄が殺されるか父が殺されるかした。
In Chikao's dreams it was always a cat chase with his father, and it was either him or his father being killed.
From 獅子 by 三島由紀夫.
15. 浮きつ沈みつ
Floating up and down
16. 御米は依然として、のつそつ床の中で動いていた。
Oyone was still stretching and crouching in her bed.
From 門 by 夏目漱石.
Derivation Note: のつそっつ is a contraction of のっつそっつ, which is a contraction of のりつ反りつ.
17. 組んず解れつ
Locked in a grapple
Derivation Note: The previous expression comes from a sound change of 組みつ解れつ.
The Similar ~み~み
~み can also be seen in the pattern "連用形 of verb + ~み + verb with ~ず + ~み" to show two actions or conditions were being repeated in alternation. This, too, is an archaism.
18. 降りみ降らずみ (古語)
From raining to not raining
~み can also be seen in the pattern "連用形 of verb + ~み + verb with ~ず + ~み" to show two actions or conditions were being repeated in alternation. This, too, is an archaism.
24. 降りみ降らずみ (古語)
From raining to not raining
The particle しき greatly resembles だけ, but it is no longer used a lot and is very limited in usage.
しき is seen after これ, それ, and あれ to express that something is "only about...much". The particle しき derives from 式 meaning "style". しき is synonymous to the pattern たかが…くらい.
1. これしきだ。
It's just this much.
2. これしきの問題で弱音を吐くな。
Don't whine about such an insignificant problem.
3. たかがそれくらいのもんだから、心配するな。
Don't worry cause it's only just that much.
4. ほんのあれしきのことで驚いてはいけぬぞ。
You mustn't be astonished at such a mere thing as that.
Orthography Note: You may write しき in 当て字 as 式.
In this lesson, we will direct attention to a unique grammar that, although not common, is a demonstration of how older grammar can evolve and survive—even if it becomes dialectical.
As indicated by the title, the grammar pattern to be discussed is ~いで. This derives from the conjunctive particle で, which although largely not used in Modern Japanese aside from set expressions, is equivalent in meaning and usage to ~ないで and ~ずに. We will first learn about the etymological background that links this ~で with ~いで. Then, we’ll learn about how ~いで remains used today.
The conjunctive particle で is the contraction of the old 連用形 of the negative auxiliary ず, に-, followed by the conjunctive particle て. It may also potentially be the contraction of the ず-連用形 of the negative auxiliary ず in conjunction with て (~ずて), but the etymology would still be the same. This grammar began being used in Early Middle Japanese (794-1185 A.D.). As the particle derives from a negative auxiliary, it attaches to the 未然形 of a verb.
1. この
恨
み、
晴
らさでおくべきか。
How could I not dispel this resentment?
Grammar Notes:
1. A Modern Japanese rendition of this would be 「この恨み、晴らさないでおけようか。いや、晴らさなければならない」.
2. The べきか of this example is equivalent to できるのだろうか.
2. いかで
月
を
見
ではあらむ。
How is it that one can stand not to look at the moon?
Grammar Note: A Modern Japanese rendition of this would be 「どうして月を見ないでいられようか、いやいられない」.
The pronunciation of the conjunctive particle で was actually /nde/. It is this nasal initial /n/ that became contracted into a nasal /i/, thus rendering the grammar as いで. This grammar began being used in the Muromachi Period (1336-1573 A.D.). Its usage is identical to its predecessor. It too attaches to the 未然形 of a verb.
3.
我
とても
女
の
身
、
腹
が
立
たいであるものか。
I after all am a woman; how could I not get mad?
From
寿
の
門松
by
近松門左衛門
.
Grammar Note: A Modern Japanese rendition of this would be 「私だって女の身、腹が立たないでいられるものか」.
4.
私
や
子供
は
何着
いでも、とかく
男
は
世間
が
大事
。
Even if neither I nor the children have anything to wear, the world will remain important to the men.
From
心中天網島
by
近松門左衛門
.
~いで remained used throughout Japanese up into the Edo Period (1603-1868). In the literature of this era, it was incredibly common in 落語 (professional storytelling). As Ex. 4 demonstrated, it was also possible to see ~いでも (= ~なくても・ないでも). It was also possible to see ~いでは (= ~ないでは・ずには). These two grammar points also carried over into Early Modern Japanese. In Modern Japanese, all facets of ~いで are no longer common. Speakers that do use this grammar tend to either be older and/or from West Japan where it has held on the most.
5.
試合
をせいでは
通
されぬ。
One will not be let through without playing a match.
6. そんな
寿命
を
縮
めるようなゲームをやらいでもいいよ。
You don’t need to play such a life shortening game like that.
7. そんなことも
知
らいでよう
言
うわ。
You sure talk for someone who doesn’t even know that!
Dialect Note: よう = よく in dialects of West Japan.
8.
何遍
も
言
わいでも
聞
こえてるよ。
I’m able to hear you without you saying it over and over.
~いでか
As illustrated by Exs. 1-3, it is without a doubt that this grammar is most commonly used in expressing “how could/would I not…” This usage is rendered as ~いでか in today’s speech. This is generally deemed to be 関西弁. However, because it existed in Early Modern Japanese, it is more accurate to say that it only remains used in West Japan, where the dialect happens to be 関西弁. This grammar can occasionally be seen in literature, including manga. Even in West Japan, though, it is losing currency.
9. 「ほう、わかるか?」「わからいでか!」
“Oh, you understand?” “How would I not understand!”
10.
分
からいでか、お
前
は
判
り
易
すぎなんだよ。
How would I know understand, you’re too easy to get.
11. 「やるのか?」「やらいでか!」
“Are you really going to?” “The hell I am!”
12.
死
ぬ
前
に
言
いたいことを
言
わいでか。
How would I not say what I want to say before dying?
13.
怒
らいでか!
You bet I’m angry! How could I not be?
14.
気付
かいでか。
How could I not notice?
15. 「
彼
が
裏切
り
者
だと
気
が
付
いたんだい?」「わからいでか!ていうか、
隊長
ですら
知
ってて
口
を
噤
んでたんだ」
“So you realized that he was a traitor?” “How would I not know!? Or, should I say, even the captain knew but just kept his mouth shut.”
Text (文章) is made of sentences (文), which make paragraphs (文節). Words aren't spaced, but overall, punctuation is very similar to English. Unlike English, though, there aren't understood guidelines. Punctuation is hardly taught. Most points in this lesson come from the Ministry of Education's suggestions from 1946. To best demonstrate the contents of it, examples provided in it will also be shown here with revised spellings.
Terminology Notes: Punctuation marks = 約物(やくもの); Punctuation = 句読法(くとうほう)
。 marks the end of a statement/sentence including inversions even in parentheses. However, if it is very simple item, it is omitted. The decision is subjective, but things like 「気をつけて」 don't need 。. You may also see it after parentheses at the end of a sentence.
1. 大雨の影響で三重県内では桑名市で少なくとも7棟の住宅が、菰野町で1棟が床上まで水につかりました。
Due to the effect of heavy rain there are 7 houses at least in Kuwana City inside Mie Prefecture and one house in Komono Town where they are submerged in water above floor level.
2. 来た、来た、あの猫が。
It came, it came, that cat.
3. 「どっちへ。」「葛飾まで。」
"To where?" "To Katsushika"
4. おいしい、これ。
This is delicious.
5. このことは、すでに第四章で説明した(六十七頁参照)
This is already explained in Chapter 4 (See Pg. 67)
The ピリオド
The ピリオド is used in horizontal writing to separate the parts of a date. Its actual use as a period is extremely, extremely rare because there is 。.
6. 99.4.5
March 5, 1999
The 読点, 、, is used at the writer's discretion for a number of things. Its main usage is to show a pause. It may also show the separation of numbers. As for numbers, there is the native breakup by powers of four, and then there is the Western way by powers of three. Both are used with the Western way in formal, official business. In horizontal text, the comma may rarely be seen as ,.
Above is what you'd need if you quickly want to know information about the Japanese comma. There are actually other guidelines out there, but as mentioned before, many Japanese never study them. Nevertheless, knowing the following information will aid you in your writing.
7. 私は、野球が大好きです。
I love baseball.
8. 二、三〇〇円
Two, three hundred yen
9. 三五六, 五六七, 三五二
356,567,352
10. 出た,出た,月が。
It's out, it's out, the moon.
11. 聞いたか、僕のいうことを?
Did you hear...what I said?
As a primary general rule, a comma is placed after a pause in a sentence, with the most obvious place being after dependent clauses. Even if a pause takes the 終止形, 、 is used instead of 。 if the sense of the sentence continues. However, based on other balances in the sentence, 。 may prevail.
12a. 父も喜び、母も喜んだ。
12b. 父も喜んだ、母も喜んだ。
My father and my mother were joyous.
13. この真心が天に通じ、人の心をも動かしたのであろう。彼の事業はようやく村人の間に理解されはじめました。
This devotion lead to heaven, and definitely moved the hearts of people. His work was finally beginning to be understood among the villagers.
There is also something like a half-period called the シロテン. Its use has been proposed and promoted, and in the event of leaving the above sentence as,
14. この真心が天に通じ、人の心をも動かしたのであろう。彼の事業は・・・
it would be perfect rather than the period. The use of シロテン is very limited, but you may see it depending on how much literature you read. is what it looks like. It is essentially a hollowed out comma. Typing it is not an option yet. However, if there were more people willing to use it, that could be changed.
The secondary principal to using the comma is placing it before and after adverbial phrases. However, intonation may cause some the comma to be deleted.
15. 昨夜、帰宅以来、お尋ねの件について(、)当時の日誌を調べてみましたところ、やはり(、)そのとき申し上げた通りでありました。(敬語)
Last night, after returning home, in regards to matter I was asked, just when I looked through my diary at the time, it was as to be expected just as I had said then.
A comma is meant in Japanese to flow with the context. The context should be easy to process, and so the most important thing to gather is that its use is appropriately controlled with realistic utterance in mind. As such, just as in English, the comma can clarify intended meaning. With that said, its use with conjunctions, interjections, and aizuchi are quite the same.
16. 坊や、おいで。
Boy, come here.
17. また、私は・・・・
I, again,...
18. 私は(、)反対です。
I'm against it.
When there is more than one attribute, the first attribute should be marked with a comma.
19. くじゃくは、長い、美しい尾を扇のように広げました。
The peacock expanded its long, beautiful tail like a fan.
Of course, let's not forget the comma's use in listing. It's also often placed before the start of 「」. It's also after と、 when text follows rather than a citation verb. Even in listing, though, "unneeded" commas are commonly deleted. This choice is seen with particles like と and も.
20a. 父も母も兄も姉も
20b. 父も、母も、兄も、姉も
Also my father, mother, older brother and older sister
Terminology Note: 読(点) is 、 and コンマ is , .
Also referred to with the loanword, エスクラメーションマーク, a ! is used to show great exclamation.
21. 一体全体どうなってるんだ!
What on earth!
The 疑問符(ぎもんふ)
A 疑問符 or クエスチョンマーク,?, is used to mark a question emphatically. The question is normally created by a rise in intonation rather than with the particle か. The mark is usually called ハテナ.
22. えっ、どういうこと?
Huh, what do you mean?
点々 is a line of usually three~five dots that shows the dodging/evasion/significant pause during a conversation. When lengthened to a whole chain, it is then called a 点線, "a line of dots". This is used frequently to show that there is an omission of text afterwards. This is just like in English. This can be seen in connecting chapter titles and page numbers in tables of contents like below.
23. えっと・・・何?
Uh....what?
24. 「それからね・・・・・・いやいや、もうなんにも申し上げますまい」 (ちょっと古風)
"Then,.......no, no, I already don't want to say anything any more".
25. 第百章......................................567ページ
Chapter 100.............................Page 567
The 中線, ―, which is often longer, is essentially the Japanese version of a dash. As the exact 中線 seen so much in Japanese literature is often not available in typing, it is usually replaced with two dashes (ダッシュ). As far as terminology is concerned, 中線 = ダッシュ. This is only a typographical difference.
The 中線, which is the official term for this punctuation mark, is often used just like a 点線 to show dodging/pause in speech. At the end, then, it would show a lingering effect.
26. 「それはね、――いや、もうやめしましょう。」
"That,....no, let's just quit already".
27. 「まあ、ほんとうにおかわいそうに――。」
"Well, [subject] really is pitiful".
In the place of 「」, it may separate text from the main body of the sentence, but it is more detached.
27. これではならない――といって起ちあがったのが彼であった。
The one saying that this won't work and got up was him.
It may also be used to show spatial/temporal distance. In this sense, it can also function as から~まで.
28. 五分―十分―十五分
Five minutes, ten minutes, fifteen minutes
27. 上野―新橋
Ueno to Shinbashi
It can also be used in the sense of すなわち.
28. 心持―心理学の用語によれば情緒とか気分とか状態意識とかいうのであるが、
Feeling--according to psychological terminology is things like emotion, mood, and situation awareness, but...
It may set things aside for explanatory emphasis, mean "from...to...", and set numbers or names apart in Japanese addresses. It should be written vertically in vertical text.
Caution Note: This has nothing to do with the 長音符 used with かな to show vowel elongation. There is no correlation, and the 長音符 and 中線 are visibly different. ー (長音符) VS ― (中線・ダッシュ). If you have trouble seeing this, zoom in and notice the curve on the left-hand part of the 長音符. Also, the 長音符 has a different origin. The dash comes from Western orthography, but the 長音符 comes from the right-hand side of 引. The mark was used well before the 明治時代 (Meiji Period).
The 中黒 may juxtapose similar items, act as a decimal, show the date, juncture foreign compound words, and separate titles, names, and positions. It may also be called 中ぽち, 中ぽつ, and 黒丸(くろまる).
29. 一四・七
14.7
30. ヒラリー・クリントン
Hillary Clinton
31. 平成一三・五・二六
May 26, Heisei 13 (2001)
32. 安心と信頼・品質をあなたへ
Peace of mind and trust/quality to you
33. 全銀協会長・永易克典
Japanese Banker's Association Head, Katsunori Nagayasu
34. 東京・大阪
Tokyo-Osaka
35. 大阪・京都・神戸
Osaka-Kyoto-Kobe
The 脇線 is a vertical line that directs the reader's attention a certain part of a phrase or word or the entirety of such. This comes from English influence and becomes useful when the punctuation mark traditionally used, which will be discussed next, cannot be typed easily.
36. そう考えられる。
The 脇点(わきてん)
The 脇点 is a comma-like italic punctuation mark in Japanese vertical text that is used to direct some sort of special attention to what it's beside. It can also appear like a period. It may also go by the names 圏点 and 傍点. If you especially read material that is written vertically, you will see it everywhere.
The space may be used in かな-only text to separate phrases to prevent confusion. It is seen before the beginning of a new paragraph, similar to a tab. Spaces are also left after non-Japanese punctuation marks such as !. Spaces may also be between names and things in an address or title.
38. スペースは かなのみでの ぶんに つかわれているよ。
Spaces are only used in Kana-only sentences.
39. 何? 分かりません。
What? I don't understand.
40. 大和銀行 大阪支店
Yamato Bank, Osaka Branch
41. 藤原 恵子
Keiko Fujiwara
The 鉤括弧(かぎかっこう) and 二重(ふたえ)括弧
The 鉤括弧 is the true Japanese quotation mark and is seen as 「」 in horizontal texts and is rotated 90° in vertical texts. When quotations are within a quotations, you must use double quotation marks, 『』.
42. 「こんにちは」
43. 国歌「君が代」
National Anthem "Kimigayo"
44. 「さっきお出かけの途中、『なにかめずらしい本はないか。』とお立ち寄りくださいました。」 (尊敬語)
"Just a while ago while heading out, [he] stopped by and [asked] "are there any rare books?".
Typological Note: You may also come across〝 〟, which have no particular name and are limited to the use of just using quotations around important phrases.
The ” “ (引用符) is typically used as quotation marks for short phrases--"so-called".They are also sometimes referred to as ノノカギ.
45. これは有名な”東京タワー”です。
This is the so-called famous Tokyo Tower.
The 丸括弧(まるかっこ)・パーレン・小括弧(しょうかっこ)
() may be used to show readings of characters (although ふりがな is more prevalent). It may also show annotation. In editing, it is used to enclose instructions/signatures. in vertical writing, horizontal ones enclose numbers/letters for sections.
46. 広日本文典(明治三十年刊)
Kounihon Grammar (Published Meiji Period Year 30)
47. (その一)(第二回)(承前)(続き)(完)(終)(未完)(続く)(山田)
(The first)(second time)(continued from)(continuation)(completion)(end)(incomplete)(to continue)(Yamada)
48. (一)
(イ)
(a)
Math Note: In the realm of math, it may show coordinates in geometry, show the argument of a function in programming, show a math matrix, etc.
Reading Note: 丸括弧 is also read as まるがっこ.
Other Brackets
Bracket | Name(s) | Description |
[] | 角括弧 | Its use in literature is almost nonexistent, but it is used in specialized fields in the same way as in English. For instance, it may close a mathematical interval, be seen in chemical formulas, in phonetic transcription, coding, etc. |
〈〉 | 山括弧 | Used in quantum physics for brackets. You may also see this mark doubled to show readings. |
〔〕 | 亀甲括弧・亀の子括弧 | Encases abbreviations of some sort and may also be doubled |
{} | 波括弧・ブレース・カーリブラケット・カール・中括弧 | Encloses words or lines considered to be together. |
【】〖〗 | 隅付き括弧 | When white, used to mark 常用漢字 not taught by 6th grade. When black, it encases labeling and may mark 教育漢字. ALso called 隅付きパーレン, 太亀甲, and 黒亀甲. |
The ツナギ is a =, resembling an equal sign, and is used in the way a hyphen is in English at the end of a line when a word continues onto the next page. This is only seen with Kana text, and even this has fallen out of use. The ツナギテン, ―, is used in the sense of から~まで.
49.
サルハ トウトウ ジブ=
ンガ ワルカッタト ア=
ヤマリマシタ。
The money finally apologized and said that he was the one at fault.
Examples
50. あ〜〜〜
Ahhhhhh
51. ♬ 〜
Suggests music
52. フランス〜
From France
53. 5時~7時
54. 〜概要〜
-Outline-
55. 東京〜大阪
From Tokyo to Osaka
Colons are used in showing time when using Arabic numerals. A semicolon can be used in place of a ナカテン. This is rare and seen in horizontal text
56. 3:46
57. 静岡;浜松;名古屋;大阪,京都,神戸;岡山;広島を
Ditto marks are very important in 漢字 and かな orthography. Ditto mark in Japanese may be:
踊り字 | おどりじ | 繰り返し符号 | くりかえしきごう | 重ね字 | かさねじ |
送り字 | おくりじ | 揺すり字 | ゆすりじ | 重字 | じゅうじ |
重点 | じゅうてん | 畳字 | じょうじ |
Along with this, there are quite a few ditto marks in Japanese.
々・仝 | どうのじてん | Doubles a 漢字 or compound | 時々、部分々々 | |||
ヽ | いちのじてん | Doubles a カタカナ; makes sound basic. | ハヽ | |||
ヾ | いちのじてん | Doubles a カタカナ and makes it voiced. | タヾ | |||
ゝ | いちのじてん | Doubles a ひらがな; makes sound basic. | つゝ | |||
ゞ | いちのじてん | Doubles a ひらがな and makes it voiced. | すゞき | |||
〻 | ふたのじてん | Doubles the reading of a preceding 漢字. | 各〻 | |||
〳〵 | くのじてん | Looks like くin vertical texts. Doubles previous phrase. |
見る〳〵 | |||
〴〵 | くのじてん | Looks like ぐin vertical texts. Doubles previous phrase. |
|
Spelling Note: The second くのじてん voices the first sound of the phrase it doubles.
Mark | Name | Description |
〓 | ダブルハイフン・下駄記号 | Sometimes used instead of a ・ but typically symbolizes non-existence Kanji glyphs. |
※ | 米印・星 | Japanese version of an asterisk and is used to show an annotation. |
* | アステリスク | English-like version of the asterisk. |
〆 | しめ | Closes a letter. |
♪♫♬♩ | 音符 | Musical notes that suggest melody. |
→←↑↓ | 矢印 | Whatever arrows do. |
♡ ♥ | ハートマーク | Love |
The 庵点(いおりてん)
The 庵点 is used to mark the beginning of a song and is most known for showing the start of a person's line in Noh Theatre.
There have been several systems used to transliterate Japanese with Latin characters.
The Kunrei-shiki was promulgated by the Ministry of Education and was repealed and then given stipulated variants for international relationships and then decreed again in 1954. New かな extensions are hard to apply with this system. So, ambiguity is a problem. For example, ティ and チ are both rendered as "ti".
ア・ A | イ・ I | ウ・う U | エ・え E | オ・お O | YA ャ | YU ュ | YO ョ | |
K | カ・か KA | キ・き KI | ク・く KU | ケ・け KE | コ・こ KO | キャ・きゃ KYA |
キュ・きゅ KYU |
キョ・きょ KYO |
S | サ・さ SA | シ・し SI | ス・す SU | セ・せ SE | ソ・そ SO | シャ・しゃ SYA |
シュ・しゅ SYU |
ショ・しょ SYO |
T | タ・た TA | チ・ち TI | ツ・つ TU | テ・て TE | ト・と TO | チャ・ちゃ TYA |
チュ・ちゅ TYU |
チョ・ちょ TYO |
N | ナ・な NA | ニ・に NI | ヌ・ぬ NU | ネ・ね NE | ノ・の NO | ニャ・にゃ NYA |
ニュ・にゅ NYU |
ニョ・にょ NYO |
H | ハ・は HA | ヒ・ひ HI | フ・ふ HU | ヘ・へ HE | ホ・ほ HO | ヒャ・ひゃ HYA |
ヒュ・ひゅ HYU |
ヒョ・ひょ HYO |
M | マ・ま MA | ミ・み MI | ム・む MU | メ・め ME | モ・も MO | ミャ・みゃ MYA |
ミュ・みゅMYU |
ミョ・みょ MYO |
Y | ヤ・や YA | (I) | ユ・ゆ YU | (E) | ヨ・よ YO | |||
R | ラ・ら RA | リ・り RI | ル・る RU | レ・れ RE | ロ・ろ RO | リャ・りゃ RYA |
リュ・りゅ RYU |
リョ・りょ RYO |
W | ワ・わ WA | ヰ・ゐ I | (U) | ヱ・ゑ E | ヲ・を O | |||
ン・ん N(') | ||||||||
G | ガ・が GA | ギ・ぎ GI | グ・ぐ GU | ゲ・げ GE | ゴ・ご GO | ギャ・ぎゃ GYA |
ギュ・ぎゅ GYU |
ギョ・ぎょ GYO |
Z | ザ・ざ ZA | ジ・じ ZI | ズ。ず ZU | ゼ・ぜ ZE | ゾ・ぞ ZO | ジャ・じゃ ZYA |
ジュ・じゅ ZYU |
ジュ・じょ ZYO |
D | ダ・だ DA | ヂ・ぢ ZI | ヅ・づ ZU | デ・で DE | ド・ど DO | ヂャ・ぢゃ ZYA |
ヂュ・ぢゅ ZYU |
ヂョ・ぢょ ZYO |
B | バ・ば BA | ビ ・び BI | ブ・ぶ BU | ベ・べ BE | ボ・ぼ BO | ビャ・びゃ BYA |
ビュ・びゅ BYU |
ビョ・びょ BYO |
P | パ・ぱ PA | ピ・ぴ PI | プ・ぷ PU | ペ・ぺ PE | ポ・ぽ PO | ピャ・ぴゃ PYA |
ピュ・ぴゅ PYU |
ピョ・ぴょ PYO |
Other Orthographic Rules
A | I | U | O |
くゎ KWA |
|||
ぐゎ GWA |
|||
つ TSU |
|||
ふ FU |
|||
しゃ SHA |
し SHI |
しゅ SHU |
しょ SHO |
じゃ JA |
じ JI |
じゅ JU |
じょ JO |
ぢゃ DYA |
ぢ DI |
ぢゅ DYU |
ぢょ DYO |
づ DU |
The Hepburn Romanization system, ヘボン式ローマ字, is credited to James Curtis Hepburn who transcribed the Japanese language into English letters. There are three editions.
Note: Rules for long vowels, long consonants, particles, and n' will be discussed during comparison. As for extended かな, the representation is the same as seen in IMABI Romanization.
The First Edition
ア・ A | イ・ I | ウ・う U | エ・え E | オ・お O | YA ャ | YU ュ | YO ョ | |
K | カ・か KA | キ・き KI | ク・く KU | ケ・け KE | コ・こ KO | キャ・きゃ KYA |
キュ・きゅ KYU |
キョ・きょ KYO |
S | サ・さ SA | シ・し SHI | ス・す SZ |
セ・せ SE | ソ・そ SO | シャ・しゃ SYA |
シュ・しゅ SYU |
ショ・しょ SYO |
T | タ・た TA | チ・ち CHI | ツ・つ TSZ | テ・て TE | ト・と TO | チャ・ちゃ CHA |
チュ・ちゅ CHU |
チョ・ちょ CHO |
N | ナ・な NA | ニ・に NI | ヌ・ぬ NU | ネ・ね NE | ノ・の NO | ニャ・にゃ NYA |
ニュ・にゅ NYU |
ニョ・にょ NYO |
H | ハ・は HA | ヒ・ひ HI | フ・ふ FU | ヘ・へ HE | ホ・ほ HO | ヒャ・ひゃ HYA |
ヒュ・ひゅ HYU |
ヒョ・ひょ HYO |
M | マ・ま MA | ミ・み MI | ム・む MU | メ・め ME | モ・も MO | ミャ・みゃ MYA |
ミュ・みゅMYU |
ミョ・みょ MYO |
Y | ヤ・や YA | ユ・ゆ YU | ヨ・よ YO | |||||
R | ラ・ら RA | リ・り RI | ル・る RU | レ・れ RE | ロ・ろ RO | リャ・りゃ RYA |
リュ・りゅ RYU |
リョ・りょ RYO |
W | ワ・わ WA | ヰ・ゐ WI | ヱ・ゑ WE | ヲ・を WO | ||||
ン・ん N(-), M | ||||||||
G | ガ・が GA | ギ・ぎ GI | グ・ぐ GU | ゲ・げ GE | ゴ・ご GO | ギャ・ぎゃ GYA |
ギュ・ぎゅ GYU |
ギョ・ぎょ GYO |
Z | ザ・ざ ZA | ジ・じ JI | ズ。ず DZ | ゼ・ぜ ZE | ゾ・ぞ ZO | ジャ・じゃ JA |
ジュ・じゅ JU |
ジュ・じょ JO |
D | ダ・だ DA | ヂ・ぢ JI | ヅ・づ DZ | デ・で DE | ド・ど DO | ヂャ・ぢゃ JA |
ヂュ・ぢゅ JU |
ヂョ・ぢょ JO |
B | バ・ば BA | ビ ・び BI | ブ・ぶ BU | ベ・べ BE | ボ・ぼ BO | ビャ・びゃ BYA |
ビュ・びゅ BYU |
ビョ・びょ BYO |
P | パ・ぱ PA | ピ・ぴ PI | プ・ぷ PU | ペ・ぺ PE | ポ・ぽ PO | ピャ・ぴゃ PYA |
ピュ・ぴゅ PYU |
ピョ・ぴょ PYO |
The Second Edition
ア・ A | イ・ I | ウ・う U | エ・え YE | オ・お O | YA ャ | YU ュ | YO ョ | |
K | カ・か KA | キ・き KI | ク・く KU | ケ・け KE | コ・こ KO | キャ・きゃ KIYA |
キュ・きゅ KIU |
キョ・きょ KIYO |
S | サ・さ SA | シ・し SI | ス・す SU | セ・せ SE | ソ・そ SO | シャ・しゃ SHA |
シュ・しゅ SHU |
ショ・しょ SHO |
T | タ・た TA | チ・ち CHI | ツ・つ TSU | テ・て TE | ト・と TO | チャ・ちゃ CHA |
チュ・ちゅ CHU |
チョ・ちょ CHO |
N | ナ・な NA | ニ・に NI | ヌ・ぬ NU | ネ・ね NE | ノ・の NO | ニャ・にゃ NYA |
ニュ・にゅ NYU |
ニョ・にょ NYO |
H | ハ・は HA | ヒ・ひ HI | フ・ふ FU | ヘ・へ HE | ホ・ほ HO | ヒャ・ひゃ HYA |
ヒュ・ひゅ HYU |
ヒョ・ひょ HYO |
M | マ・ま MA | ミ・み MI | ム・む MU | メ・め ME | モ・も MO | ミャ・みゃ MYA |
ミュ・みゅMYU |
ミョ・みょ MYO |
Y | ヤ・や YA | ユ・ゆ YU | ヨ・よ YO | |||||
R | ラ・ら RA | リ・り RI | ル・る RU | レ・れ RE | ロ・ろ RO | リャ・りゃ RYA |
リュ・りゅ RYU |
リョ・りょ RYO |
W | ワ・わ WA | ヰ・ゐ WI | ヱ・ゑ YE | ヲ・を WO | ||||
ン・ん N(-), M |
||||||||
G | ガ・が GA | ギ・ぎ GI | グ・ぐ GU | ゲ・げ GE | ゴ・ご GO | ギャ・ぎゃ GYA |
ギュ・ぎゅ GYU |
ギョ・ぎょ GYO |
Z | ザ・ざ ZA | ジ・じ ZI | ズ。ず DZU | ゼ・ぜ ZE | ゾ・ぞ ZO | ジャ・じゃ JA |
ジュ・じゅ JU |
ジュ・じょ JO |
D | ダ・だ DA | ヂ・ぢ ZI | ヅ・づ DZU | デ・で DE | ド・ど DO | ヂャ・ぢゃ JA |
ヂュ・ぢゅ JU |
ヂョ・ぢょ JO |
B | バ・ば BA | ビ ・び BI | ブ・ぶ BU | ベ・べ BE | ボ・ぼ BO | ビャ・びゃ BYA |
ビュ・びゅ BYU |
ビョ・びょ BYO |
P | パ・ぱ PA | ピ・ぴ PI | プ・ぷ PU | ペ・ぺ PE | ポ・ぽ PO | ピャ・ぴゃ PYA |
ピュ・ぴゅ PYU |
ピョ・ぴょ PYO |
Edits
Third Edition: 1887 (Traditional Hepburn/Hyoujun-shiki Roomaji 標準式ローマ字)
ア・ A | イ・ I | ウ・う U | エ・え E | オ・お O | YA ャ | YU ュ | YO ョ | |
K | カ・か KA | キ・き KI | ク・く KU | ケ・け KE | コ・こ KO | キャ・きゃ KYA |
キュ・きゅ KYU |
キョ・きょ KYO |
S | サ・さ SA | シ・し SHI | ス・す SU | セ・せ SE | ソ・そ SO | シャ・しゃ SHA |
シュ・しゅ SHU |
ショ・しょ SHO |
T | タ・た TA | チ・ち CHI | ツ・つ TSU | テ・て TE | ト・と TO | チャ・ちゃ CHA |
チュ・ちゅ CHU |
チョ・ちょ CHO |
N | ナ・な NA | ニ・に NI | ヌ・ぬ NU | ネ・ね NE | ノ・の NO | ニャ・にゃ NYA |
ニュ・にゅ NYU |
ニョ・にょ NYO |
H | ハ・は HA | ヒ・ひ HI | フ・ふ FU | ヘ・へ HE | ホ・ほ HO | ヒャ・ひゃ HYA |
ヒュ・ひゅ HYU |
ヒョ・ひょ HYO |
M | マ・ま MA | ミ・み MI | ム・む MU | メ・め ME | モ・も MO | ミャ・みゃ MYA |
ミュ・みゅMYU |
ミョ・みょ MYO |
Y | ヤ・や YA | ユ・ゆ YU | ヨ・よ YO | |||||
R | ラ・ら RA | リ・り RI | ル・る RU | レ・れ RE | ロ・ろ RO | リャ・りゃ RYA |
リュ・りゅ RYU |
リョ・りょ RYO |
W | ワ・わ WA | ヰ・ゐ (W)I | ヱ・ゑ (W)E | ヲ・を (W)O | ||||
ン・ん N(-), M |
||||||||
G | ガ・が GA | ギ・ぎ GI | グ・ぐ GU | ゲ・げ GE | ゴ・ご GO | ギャ・ぎゃ GYA |
ギュ・ぎゅ GYU |
ギョ・ぎょ GYO |
Z | ザ・ざ ZA | ジ・じ JI | ズ。ず ZU | ゼ・ぜ ZE | ゾ・ぞ ZO | ジャ・じゃ JA |
ジュ・じゅ JU |
ジュ・じょ JO |
D | ダ・だ DA | ヂ・ぢ JI | ヅ・づ ZU | デ・で DE | ド・ど DO | ヂャ・ぢゃ JA |
ヂュ・ぢゅ JU |
ヂョ・ぢょ JO |
B | バ・ば BA | ビ ・び BI | ブ・ぶ BU | ベ・べ BE | ボ・ぼ BO | ビャ・びゃ BYA |
ビュ・びゅ BYU |
ビョ・びょ BYO |
P | パ・ぱ PA | ピ・ぴ PI | プ・ぷ PU | ペ・ぺ PE | ポ・ぽ PO | ピャ・ぴゃ PYA |
ピュ・ぴゅ PYU |
ピョ・ぴょ PYO |
Edits
Modern Hepburn
ア・ A | イ・ I | ウ・う U | エ・え E | オ・お O | YA ャ | YU ュ | YO ョ | |
K | カ・か KA | キ・き KI | ク・く KU | ケ・け KE | コ・こ KO | キャ・きゃ KYA |
キュ・きゅ KYU |
キョ・きょ KYO |
S | サ・さ SA | シ・し SHI | ス・す SU | セ・せ SE | ソ・そ SO | シャ・しゃ SHA |
シュ・しゅ SHU |
ショ・しょ SHO |
T | タ・た TA | チ・ち TI | ツ・つ TU | テ・て TE | ト・と TO | チャ・ちゃ CHA |
チュ・ちゅ CHU |
チョ・ちょ CHO |
N | ナ・な NA | ニ・に NI | ヌ・ぬ NU | ネ・ね NE | ノ・の NO | ニャ・にゃ NYA |
ニュ・にゅ NYU |
ニョ・にょ NYO |
H | ハ・は HA | ヒ・ひ HI | フ・ふ FU | ヘ・へ HE | ホ・ほ HO | ヒャ・ひゃ HYA |
ヒュ・ひゅ HYU |
ヒョ・ひょ HYO |
M | マ・ま MA | ミ・み MI | ム・む MU | メ・め ME | モ・も MO | ミャ・みゃ MYA |
ミュ・みゅMYU |
ミョ・みょ MYO |
Y | ヤ・や YA | ユ・ゆ YU | ヨ・よ YO | |||||
R | ラ・ら RA | リ・り RI | ル・る RU | レ・れ RE | ロ・ろ RO | リャ・りゃ RYA |
リュ・りゅ RYU |
リョ・りょ RYO |
W | ワ・わ WA | ヰ・ゐ (W)I | ヱ・ゑ (W)E | ヲ・を (W)O | ||||
ン・ん N(') | ||||||||
G | ガ・が GA | ギ・ぎ GI | グ・ぐ GU | ゲ・げ GE | ゴ・ご GO | ギャ・ぎゃ GYA |
ギュ・ぎゅ GYU |
ギョ・ぎょ GYO |
Z | ザ・ざ ZA | ジ・じ JI | ズ。ず ZU | ゼ・ぜ ZE | ゾ・ぞ ZO | ジャ・じゃ JA |
ジュ・じゅ JU |
ジュ・じょ JO |
D | ダ・だ DA | ヂ・ぢ JI | ヅ・づ ZU | デ・で DE | ド・ど DO | ヂャ・ぢゃ JA |
ヂュ・ぢゅ JU |
ヂョ・ぢょ JO |
B | バ・ば BA | ビ ・び BI | ブ・ぶ BU | ベ・べ BE | ボ・ぼ BO | ビャ・びゃ BYA |
ビュ・びゅ BYU |
ビョ・びょ BYO |
P | パ・ぱ PA | ピ・ぴ PI | プ・ぷ PU | ペ・ぺ PE | ポ・ぽ PO | ピャ・ぴゃ PYA |
ピュ・ぴゅ PYU |
ピョ・ぴょ PYO |
Edits
Compare and Contrast
Changes also occurred in respect to long vowels and long consonants and with n' over time. Because there are no differences between these topics in the three original editions of Hepburn, this discussion will be about Traditional vs. Modern.
Long Vowels
Traditional | Modern | |
A | Aa | Ā |
I | Ii | Ii |
U | Uu | Ū |
E+E | E/ee | Ē |
E+I | Ei | Ei |
O+O | Oo | Ō |
O+U | Ou | Ō |
Note: For loanwords all vowels are elongated with macrons. Also, common variations exist for O+U. Such variants include "oh", "o", "ou", "oo", and "ô".
Particles
Traditional | Modern | |
へ | He | E |
は | Wa | Wa |
を | Wo | (W)o |
Double Consonants
There is no difference between any edition of Hepburn in respect to double consonants. Double consonants are represented normally with sh, ts, and ch doubled as "ssh", "tts", and "tch".
The Uvular Nasal Consonant
ン・ん in Traditional Hepburn is transcribed as m when before a m, b, or p sound. When before an n-sound or a vowel, it is separated from these sounds with a hyphen. In Modern Hepburn, m is replaced with n and an apostrophe is used instead of a hyphen when separated n' from n-sounds and vowels.
The Nihon-shiki was created by Aikitsu Tanakadate 愛橘田中館 and is the basis for the Kunrei-shiki and is essentially the same minus a few exceptions. These differences are:
ア・ A | イ・ I | ウ・う U | エ・え E | オ・お O | YA ャ | YU ュ | YO ョ | |
K | カ・か KA | キ・き KI | ク・く KU | ケ・け KE | コ・こ KO | キャ・きゃ KYA |
キュ・きゅ KYU |
キョ・きょ KYO |
S | サ・さ SA | シ・し SI | ス・す SU | セ・せ SE | ソ・そ SO | シャ・しゃ SYA |
シュ・しゅ SYU |
ショ・しょ SYO |
T | タ・た TA | チ・ち TI | ツ・つ TU | テ・て TE | ト・と TO | チャ・ちゃ TYA |
チュ・ちゅ TYU |
チョ・ちょ TYO |
N | ナ・な NA | ニ・に NI | ヌ・ぬ NU | ネ・ね NE | ノ・の NO | ニャ・にゃ NYA |
ニュ・にゅ NYU |
ニョ・にょ NYO |
H | ハ・は HA | ヒ・ひ HI | フ・ふ HU | ヘ・へ HE | ホ・ほ HO | ヒャ・ひゃ HYA |
ヒュ・ひゅ HYU |
ヒョ・ひょ HYO |
M | マ・ま MA | ミ・み MI | ム・む MU | メ・め ME | モ・も MO | ミャ・みゃ MYA |
ミュ・みゅMYU |
ミョ・みょ MYO |
Y | ヤ・や YA | ユ・ゆ YU | ヨ・よ YO | |||||
R | ラ・ら RA | リ・り RI | ル・る RU | レ・れ RE | ロ・ろ RO | リャ・りゃ RYA |
リュ・りゅ RYU |
リョ・りょ RYO |
W | ワ・わ WA | ヰ・ゐ WI | ヱ・ゑ WE | ヲ・を WO | ||||
ン・ん N(') | ||||||||
G | ガ・が GA | ギ・ぎ GI | グ・ぐ GU | ゲ・げ GE | ゴ・ご GO | ギャ・ぎゃ GYA |
ギュ・ぎゅ GYU |
ギョ・ぎょ GYO |
Z | ザ・ざ ZA | ジ・じ ZI | ズ。ず ZU | ゼ・ぜ ZE | ゾ・ぞ ZO | ジャ・じゃ ZYA |
ジュ・じゅ ZYU |
ジュ・じょ ZYO |
D | ダ・だ DA | ヂ・ぢ DI | ヅ・づ DU | デ・で DE | ド・ど DO | ヂャ・ぢゃ DYA |
ヂュ・ぢゅ DYU |
ヂョ・ぢょ DYO |
B | バ・ば BA | ビ ・び BI | ブ・ぶ BU | ベ・べ BE | ボ・ぼ BO | ビャ・びゃ BYA |
ビュ・びゅ BYU |
ビョ・びょ BYO |
P | パ・ぱ PA | ピ・ぴ PI | プ・ぷ PU | ペ・ぺ PE | ポ・ぽ PO | ピャ・ぴゃ PYA |
ピュ・ぴゅ PYU |
ピョ・ぴょ PYO |
KW | クヮ・くゎ KWA |
|||||||
GW | グヮ・グヮ GWA |
The JSL Romanization created by Eleanor Jorden and introduced in her work Japanese: The Spoken Language is heavily based off of the Kunrei-shiki Romanization System but has some important differences.
Abbreviations (略語) are very handy when words get lengthy. In fact, the Japanese term for abbreviation is an abbreviation. The non-abbreviated term is 省略語.
The following chart shows the most common methods of abbreviation in Japanese.
Phrases | Words |
①First characters of each part only |
⑤First part only |
②First part only |
⑥Last part only |
③Last part only |
⑦No ん |
④First and last part only |
Some abbreviations date back hundreds of years. For example, the 盆(ぼん) in the Obon Festival is a contraction of 盂蘭盆会(うらぼんえ).
When exposed to the West, new phrases were often abbreviated. Examples include ハンカチ from handkerchief and 五輪, which referred to the Berlin Olympics, for the Olympics.
The most commonly abbreviated words are 外来語 and 熟語. Contractions in conjugation and native words exist too. Titles in news reports have extended use of abbreviations. Of course, you will sometimes see regional variation such as the contraction of McDonald's (マックドナルド): マック (East Japan) and マクド (West Japan).
Abbreviation | Kana | From | Type | Meaning |
全銀協会 | ぜんぎんきょうかい | 全国銀行協会 | ① | Japan's Bank Association |
米 | べい | 米国 | ⑤ | America |
特急 | とっきゅう | 特別急行 | ① | Express train |
パソコン | ぱそこん | パソナルコンピューター | ① | Personal computer |
小学 | しょうがく | 小学校 | ⑤ | Elementary school |
東電 | とうでん | 東京電力 | ① | Tokyo Electric; TEPCO |
ケータイ | けーたい | 携帯電話 | ② | Cellphone |
ブログ | ぶろぐ | ウェブログ | ③ | Blog |
エンターテイメント | えんたーていめんと | エンターテインメント | ⑦ | Entertainment |
チョコ | ちょこ | チョコレート | ⑤ | Chocolate |
アイス | あいす | アイスコーヒー | ② | Ice Coffee |
レイコー | れいこー | アイスコーヒー | ① | Ice Coffee (Kansai Variant) |
京葉 | けいよう | 東京千葉 | ③ | Tokyo-Chiba/Keiyou Line |
高校 | こうこう | 高等学校 | ④ | High school |
入管 | にゅうかん | 入国管理局 | ① | Immigration office |
東大 | とうだい | 東京大学 | ① | Tokyo University |
日経 | にっけい | 日本経済新聞 | ① | Japan Economic Times |
ファミレス | ふぁみれす | ファミリレストラン | ① | Family restaurant |
ラブホ | らぶほ | ラブホテル | ② | Love hotel |
テレビ | てれび | テレビジョン | ② | Television |
OL | おーえーる | Office Lady | ① | Office lady |
国連 | こくれん | 国際連合 | ① | United Nations |
ソ連 | それん | ソビエト連合 | ① | Soviet Union |
安保理 | あんぽり | 安全保障理事会 | ① | Security Council |
取引所 | とりひきしょ | 証券取引所 | ③ | Stock exchange |
リハビリ | りはびり | リハビリテーション | ③ | Rehabilitation |
ブル | ぶる | ブルドーザー ブルドッグ ブルジョワ |
⑤ | Bulldozer; bulldog; bourgeoisie |
セクハラ | せくはら | セクシャルハラスメント | ① | Sexual harassment |
Most words in Japanese come from one or more of three sources.
Native words define the language itself. Regardless of the percentage, native words are used extensively. They're very similar looking throughout the Japonic language family.
Meaning | Standard | Okinawan | Amami |
Chest | Müne | N'ni | Munï |
Blood |
Tɕi | Tɕiː | Tʃiː |
Fog | Kiɾi | Tɕiɾi | Kiɺ̠i |
Rain | Äme | ʔami | ʔamï |
IPA/Curriculum Note: Tʃ is more similar to an English "ch". ɺ̠ is a retroflex lateral flap.
Native words suggest that Japanese is an isolate. Some words, though, are similar to Korean. In fact, many deemed native are actually ancient borrowings from Korean and elsewhere. Words like 馬 and 梅 came from China before 漢字. カササギ (magpie) is from Old Korean. クズリ comes from Nivkh. Lots of words come from Ainu. When the 弥生 (ancestors of the Japanese people) came to Japan, they met people called 蝦夷(えみし・えぞ). There are no records about these languages, but their descendants are the Ainu. In some Northern Japanese dialects such as 気仙, significant vocabulary comes from them. Many words considered native may be borrowed words from extinct 蝦夷 languages.
As for Modern Japanese native words, most are polysyllabic and CV (consonant-vowel). Japanese grammar for the most part doesn't intermingle items of different etymologies; however, some exceptions exist. For example, する follows Sino-Japanese words to make them verbs. な is added to Sino-Japanese abstract nouns to make them adjectives, and る is often added to words to create colloquial verbs.
Word Note: Surnames for the most part are native in origin, but given names are a different story. As for writing, native words are generally written in 漢字 or ひらがな.
漢語 (Sino-Japanese words) were borrowed from Chinese readings from several stages of Chinese. Nearly 70% of all Japanese words are 漢語, but they make up only 20% of the most frequently used words. 音読み is the basis of deciding whether a word is of Chinese origin; however, be cautious of 当て字. There are rare exceptions where a 訓読み is actually of Chinese origin: 馬 and 梅.
和製漢語
和製漢語 literally means "Japanese-made Chinese words". At the start of modern innovation, many terms were created with 音読み to describe new things.
Environment | 自然 | しぜん |
Telephone | 電話 | でんわ |
Science | 科学 | かがく |
Dermis | 皮膚 | ひふ |
Some Sino-Japanese words made in Japan even correspond to unique Japanese items.
Manga | 漫画 | まんが | Judo | 柔道 | じゅうどう |
Tokyo | 東京 | とうきょう | Japanese paper |
和紙 | わし |
Public bath |
銭湯 | せんとう | Go (game) |
碁 | ご |
Powdered green tea |
抹茶 | まっちゃ | Kendo | 剣道 | けんどう |
Geisha | 芸者 | げいしゃ | Daimyo | 大名 | だいみょう |
Dojo | 道場 | どうじょう | Haiku | 俳句 | はいく |
Shintoism | 神道 | しんとう | Shogun | 将軍 | しょうぐん |
Many Sino-Japanese words are the product of putting characters in a Chinese word order and using 音読み to make a more technical term. Of course, there are always the words that are half Sino-Japanese and half native--湯桶読み and 重箱読み.
Meaning | Native | Sino-Japanese | ||
Reply | 返り事 | かえりごと | 返事 | へんじ |
To get angry |
腹が立つ | はらがたつ | 立腹 | りっぷく |
Ninja | 忍び者 | しのびもの | 忍者 | にんじゃ |
Fire breakout |
火が出る | ひがでる | 出火 | しゅっか |
Foreign loanwords are from modern languages. Preference to use these words is somewhat debatable. Some have no native equivalent. Some have been borrowed because the possible Japanese term is too complicated. For the most part, these words are nouns, but with the aid of grammatical items such as する, な, and る, they may be turned into verbs, adjectives, etc.
At times words have mixed etymology. Foreign expressions in Japanese are often abbreviated. This is so common with English terms that it creates "和製英語" or Japanese-made English words. These words have diverged from their original appearance, meaning, or both. At times 外来語 are made in Japan to describe a unique thing and are then brought back to the original language as a new phrase. The best example of this is anime.
Common languages where 外来語 may arrive include French, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Dutch, and several primarily Indo-European languages. There are even some 外来語 from modern Chinese dialects.
外来語 are primarily written in カタカナ. There are some older loanwords, though, that may be written in 漢字. More traditional approximations are common. So, many speakers will still call a smart phone a スマートホン rather than a スマートフォン. But, there is a movement in electronic terminology to prefer newer combinations. Nowadays, though, you are more likely to hear the abbreviated form スマホ.
To some speakers, loan words are undesirable. In the realm of technology, words have been coined with normal Japanese processes and borrowing. For example, function keys used to be called 機能キー. Now they're called ファンクションキー. Many speakers would rather use 機能 rather than ファンクション.
Common 外来語
外来語 | Origin | Meaning | Original Language |
アベック | Avec | Romantic couple |
French |
アイドル | Idol | Pop star |
English |
アイスクリーム | Ice cream | Ice cream | English |
アイゼン | Steigeisen | Climbing irons |
German |
アニメ | Animation | Anime | English |
アンケート | Enquête | Questionnaire | French |
アンニュイ | Ennui | Ennui | French |
アップ | Upgrade | Upgrade | English |
アロエ | Aloë | Aloe | Dutch |
アルバイト | Arbeit | Part-time job |
German |
アルコール | Alcohol/álcool | Alcohol | Dutch/Portuguese |
バイク | Bike | Motorcycle | English |
バスケ | Basketball | Basketball | English |
バター | Butter | Butter | English |
ビル | Building | Modern steel building |
English |
ビール・麦酒 | Bier | Beer | Dutch |
ボンベ | Bombe | Steel canister | German |
ボールペン | Ballpoint pen | Ballpoint pen |
English |
ボタン | Botão | Button | Portuguese |
ブランコ | Balanço | Swing | Portuguese |
チンキ | Tinktuur | Tincture | Dutch |
ダブル | Double | Double | English |
デパート | Department store |
Department store |
English |
ドンマイ | Don't mind |
Don't worry about it |
English |
ドライバー | Driver | Screwdriver | English |
ドラマ | Drama | TV drama |
English |
エアコン | Air conditioning |
Air conditioning |
English |
エキス | Extract | Extract | Dutch |
エネルギ | Energie | Energy | German |
エレベター | Elevator | Elevator | English |
エロ | Eros | Erotic | English |
エステ | Esthétique | Beauty salon |
French |
ファンファーレ | Fanfare | Music fanfare | German |
フロント | Front desk |
Front desk |
English |
ガラス | Glas | Glass | Dutch |
ガソリンスタンド | Gasoline stand |
Gas station |
English |
ガーゼ | Gaze | Gauze | German |
ゲーセン | Game center | Video arcade |
English |
ゴム | Gom | Rubber | Dutch |
グラス | Glass | Drinking glass |
English |
グロ | Grotesque | Grotesque | English |
ハンカチ | Handkerchief | Handkerchief | English |
ハンスト | Hunger strike |
Hunger strike |
English |
ホルモン | Hormon | Hormone | German |
ホース | Hoos | Hose | Dutch |
ホーム | Platform | Railway platform |
English |
イエス | Jesus | Jesus | Portuguese |
イクラ | икра | Salmon roe |
Russian |
イメージ | Image | Image | English |
インフレ | Inflation | Inflation | English |
イラスト | Illustration | Illustration | English |
イヤホン | Earphone | Earphone | English |
ジュース | Juice | Juice | English |
カメラ | Camera | Camera | English |
合羽 | Capa de chuva |
Rain coat |
Portuguese |
カラン | Kraan | Faucet | Dutch |
カラオケ | 空 + orchestra |
Karaoke | Japanese and English |
コーヒー・珈琲 | Koffie | Coffee | Dutch |
コップ | Copo | A glass |
Portuguese |
クラブ・倶楽部 | Club | Club | English |
マージャン・麻雀 | 麻雀 | Mahjong | Mandarin Chinese |
マンション | Mansion | Condominium block |
English |
マスコミ | Mass communication |
The media |
English |
メール | English | ||
ミルク | Milk | Milk | English |
モテル | Motel | Motel | English |
ノルマ | норма | Quota | Russian |
ノート | Note | Notebook | English |
OL | Office lady |
Female office worker |
English |
パン | Pão/pan | Bread | Portuguese/Spanish |
ペスト | Pest | Black Plague | German |
ピエロ | Pierrot | Clown | French |
プロ | Professional | Professional | English |
プロレス | Professional wrestling | Professional wrestling |
English |
ライバル | Rival | Rival enemy | Englis |
ラッコ | Rakko | Sea otter |
Ainu |
レントゲン | Röntgen | X-ray | German |
リモコン | Remote control |
Remote control |
English |
リンク | Link | Link | English |
ロードショー | Road show |
Premiere | English |
ロマン | Roman | Novel | French |
リュックサック | Rucksack | Backpack | German |
サービス | Service | Service | English |
サボる | Sabotage | To slack off |
French |
サンドイッチ | Sandwich | Sandwich | English |
サラダ | Salada | Salad | Portuguese |
セレブ | Celebrity | Rich person | English |
刹那 | Ksana | Moment | Sanskrit |
ソフト | Software | Software | English |
ストーブ | Stove | Space heater |
English |
タバコ・煙草 | Tabaco | Tobacco | Portuguese |
テーマ | Thema | Theme | German |
テレビ | Television | Television | English |
トイレ | Toilet | Toilet | English |
トナカイ | Tunakkay | Reindeer | Ainu |
トランプ | Trump | Playing cards |
English |
ワンピース | One piece |
Single piece dress |
English |
ワープロ | Word processor |
Word processor |
English |
ヨード | Jod | Iodine | German |
ズボン | Jupon | Pants | French |
マンションを
探
す。
To search for an apartment.
Vocab Note: There are two words for apartment, アパート and マンション. An アパート is more like a 1~2 story building with a relatively cheaper rent whereas a マンション would be at least 3 stories.
ペンキを
塗
る。
To paint.
Noun Note: 塗る is paired with ペンキ. 塗る can also mean "to varnish; color; rub".
「パン」という語はポルタゴル語から来た。
The word "pan" came from Portuguese.
Chinese Loan Words
Newer readings from Chinese keep coming in from modern Chinese languages. Many words involve food and culture items.
皮蛋(ピータン)はガチョウの卵を灰で包んだ保存食である。
Pi dan is a preserved food of goose egg wrapped in ash.
搾菜(ザーサイ)は中国料理の漬物です。
Szechuan pickles is a pickled food in Chinese cuisine.
ギョーザはとてもおいしいですね。
Gyoza is really delicious, isn't it?
Loan | 漢字 | |
メンマ | 麺媽 | Bamboo shoots boiled, sliced, fermented, dried in salt, and soaked |
ラー油 | 辣油 | Chinese red chili oil |
リーチ | 立直 | Declaring that one is one tile away from winning in mahjong |
ワンタン | 雲呑 | Wonton |
和製英語 are constantly appearing. Many things that get Katakanized often end up being very long, and so they tend to get shortened. Once the abbreviation sticks, a new word is born. There are even ways of making many of these verbs and adjectives.
ググる = To googleマクる = To go to McDonalds サボる = To slack off
One weird instance that causes learners some confusion is on how to say apartment. There are two words for apartment, アパート and マンション. An アパート is more like a 1~2 story building with a relatively cheaper rent whereas a マンション would be at least 3 stories.
Some Japanese speakers, perhaps more so true of older speakers, view these words as unsightly as they are thought of as being words that shouldn't exist because they're corruptions of actual loans. Others think the exact opposite and consider it the beauty of the evolution of language regardless of whether English speakers still understand the phrases or not.
The chart below lists a lot of common 和製英語. ? indicates what an average native speaker of English would think what the word means having not known the origin of the phrase.
Phrase | To English speaker... | Meaning |
フリーサイズ | Free size | One size fits all |
パソコン | Pass kon | Personal computer |
モータープール | Motor pool | Parking lot |
ルポ | Rupo | Reportage |
ドタキャン | Dotacan | Last-minute cancellation |
ナイーブ | Naive | Innocent; sensitive |
エンゲージリング | Engage ring | Engagement ring |
インキー | In key | Having one's keys locked in one's car |
ホーム | Home | Railway platform |
ゲーセン | Gay sin | Game center |
ワイシャツ | Why shots | T shirt |
バックミラー | Back mirror | Rearview mirror |
フリーダイヤル | Free dailer | Toll free number |
ジェットコースター | Jet coaster | Roller coaster |
OL | OL | Female office worker |
フリートーク | Free talk | Free conversation |
フロントガラス | Front glass | Windshield |
ベッドタウン | Bed town | Commuter town |
プレイガイド | Play guide | Ticket agency |
ドライバー | Driver | Screwdriver; Driver (golf) |
チアガール | Cheer girl | Cheerleader |
ジーパン | G pan | Jeans and pants |
ナイター | Nighter | Night game |
ライブハウス | Live house | Live music club |
ランニングホームラン | Running home run | Inside-the-park home run |
フェミニスト | Feminist | Man who indulges women; feminist |
サンドバッグ | Sandbag | Punching bag |
ダンプカー | Dump car | Dumper |
スキンシップ | Skinship | Close physical contact |
サラリーマン | Salaryman | Salaryman/Salary worker |
モガ | Moga? | Modern girl |
モボ | Mobo? | Modern boy |
デッドボール | Dead ball | Hitting a pitcher with the ball |
ボールペン | Bowl pen | Ballpoint pen |
アニソン | A Nissan | Anime theme song |
ロードショー | Road show | Premiere |
ソフト | Soft | Software |
トレーナー | Trainer | Trainer; sweatshirt |
アメフト | A meth toe | American football |
ワープロ | Wah pro | Word processor |
マジックテープ | Magic tape | Velcro |
キャッチホン | Catch hone | Call waiting (from catch phone) |
ハンスト | Han stow? | Hungry strike |
マスコミ | Mass kami | The media |
コンセント | Consent | Electric outlet |
プロレス | Proless | Professional wrestling |
セクハラ・セクシャルハラスメント | Sexual harassment | Sexual harassment |
シュークリーム | Shoe cream | Cream puff (Actually from French) |
ガソリンスタンド | Gasoline stand | Gasoline station |
コマーシャルソング | Commercial song | Jingle |
ノーブランド | No brand | Generic |
ドクターコース | Doctor course | Doctor's course (PhD) |
着メロ | Receive-mellow? | Ringtone (メロ as in melody メロディー) |
フリーター | Freeter? | Freeloader |
エアコン | Air con | Air conditioner |
スマホ | Smart ho | Smartphone (Abbreviation of |
セレブ | Celeb | Celebrity |
エンスト | End stow | Engine stop |
カーナビ | Car navy | Car navigator |
バナリパ | Banaripah | Banana Republic (not everyone would get this) |
ワンピ | One pee | One piece |
ロン毛 | ?? | Long hair |
パワハラ | Power hara | Power harassment (abuse of authority) |
シネコン | Shin akon | Cinema complex |
Those Needing More Explanation
There are many 和製英語 that deserve special attention.
モーニングサービス: Morning service can be found at Japanese coffee shops where you can find very cheep (500 yen or so) meals containing eggs, toast, and coffee or maybe other things. Similar phrase include バリューセット for value meals in Western chains such as Mc. Donalds.
ターミナルホテル: Hotel that is cheap and very convenient.
ワンルームマンション: A very small room in a high-rise building around 6~8帖.
シルバーシート: Seats that should be given to elderly people. It may also be called 優先席.
ツーショット: A picture shot of two people.
ペアルック: Look-alike.
セロ(ハン)テープ: Scotch tape. It is not saran wrap.
ガムテープ: Duct tape. Although it sounds like it's tape made out of gum, it isn't.
スズランテープ: Used to often tie up magazines. It may also be used tie up cardboard boxes.
ナイター: This is not a nighter. It is a nightgame. Party time!
パスケース: What you put your boarder pass to something in. Looks like a small wallet.
ミスド: Mr. Donuts.
シュークリーム: This is not shoe cream. It is actually a cream puff.
ファッキン: This is not fucking. It is going to Fast Kitchen.
メロドラマ: This is not melodramatic. It's a soap opera.
スキンシップ: This is physical contact, especially between mother and child.
ドーナツ化現象: This is suburbanization.
コンデンスミルク: This is sweetened condensed milk (加糖練乳). In speaking of milk, Japanese call evaporated milk エバミルク (無糖練乳).
写メール: 写メ for short, is the practice of taking a picture with your cellphone and e-mailing it to someone.
Examples (More to Come)
マイカーで通勤する。
I commute with my own car.
脱サラ(リーマン)をして、事業を興す人が急増しています。
The number of people leaving salary jobs and running their own business is sharply rising.