Maybe I'm a bit (or, more likely, very) confused, but somewhere I got the idea that adding かなあ to your sentences means something "I guess" and そうかなあ means "I think so". But I'm not sure if this is correct and how to use it, in what context, so I tried several sources to find out its use and I can't find any evidence of this even existing.
Huh?
Help, anybody?
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Anonymous2008-11-24 12:19
>>405
I'd translate that as "More freedom for your laptop"
As you probably know, を is the particle that marks the direct object, and に here marks the indirect object. The verb that would normally come after を is omitted, which I think might be the cause of your confusion. Proper sentences do always end in a verb or an adjective in Japanese, but the Japanese like to omit the verb sometimes, like in this case, when it is not necessary.
You could do this: make sure you know what everything means and repeat the sentence in your mind, stressing に and を, and then fill the blank with a verb.
>>406
I think そうかなあ usually means the opposite, or "I don't think so." Like here:
A: メグミちゃんの新しいジャンパーは本当に似合うよ！
B: そうかなあ・・・。
A: Megumi's new jumper really suits her!
B: I'm not so sure...
As for かなあ, it has a very tentative flavor. Someone else can explain it better than me.
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Anonymous2008-11-24 22:55
そうかなあ＝Tentative & euphemistice, but rather frank, expression of denial or disagreement
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Anonymous2008-11-25 19:34
How the hell do you say "diary" or "journal" in Japanese? Not only write it, but say it aloud? And in the future, how can I find the way to pronounce words that are not hiragana or katakana? (I'm very new to Japanese)
The 'i' is pronounced like the 'i' in 'pink' or 'see'. The doubled k is called a sokuon and signifies gemination, or the doubling of the consonant. Gemination does exist in English pronunciation: say 'back kick' and 'black coat' aloud (and compare with 'bakick' and 'blakoat').
Anyone have any personal suggestions for increasing Japanese vocabulary? I'm pretty knowledgeable with Japanese grammar but fucked because my vocabulary sucks ass.
>>416
I know you were trying to help, but after trying Byki I'm not impressed. They don't use modified Hepburn romanisation (gozaimasu is spelt godzaimasu) and they spell こんにちは as 今日は. And that's only stuff I found in the first deck of flashcards. Also, the registers are all over the place, they use Keigo to say "I'm sorry" (申し訳ありません) while reverting to plain speech for はい／いいえ and 今日は (sic).
But in the end, I found working through a Tuttle workbook to be better for how I learn. Flash cards/SRS suit how some people learn very well, but they were only mediocre for me.
When speaking casually and asking questions, I use の instead of か, か just sounds weird with dictionary form. Is it just me or am I doing it right?
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Anonymous2008-12-07 11:35
>>429
Are you a woman? If not, GJ looking like an オカマ.
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Anonymous2008-12-07 20:21
>>430
It depends on your tone of voice. The か sure sounds manly, but の isn't necessarily feminine.
I'd say it's neutral.
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Anonymous2008-12-08 2:56
I tend to use の a lot in casual conversation. Hasn't earned me any strange looks so far.
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Anonymous2008-12-08 23:25
>>430
You are suck a fucking faggoty dumbass that you just gave me cancer. の is perfectly acceptable for male speech, ESPECIALLY with dictionary form. I mean FUCK, Japanese college guys use fucking わ as a sentence ending particle in the modern era! I went to school in Tokyo and it was わ this and わ that.
の is perfectly acceptable, and you should kill yourself right now instead of infecting noobs' minds with your bullshit.
I know you said you heard people in Tokyo using わ but I'm pretty sure that comes from 関西弁 it just made its way into normal speech these days. (Just to clarify the reason why it's not feminine.)
And, I agree with you on the usage of の at the end of sentences and you are perfectly well within your rights to rage.
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Anonymous2008-12-12 0:03
>>436
It does come from Kansai. It's basically the way to be badass in Tokyo (at least when I lived there) to copy Kansai dialect. To Kansai people, to speak with 標準語 would be a way to sound stiff or stuffy.
Kinda like ebonics vs. Standard American English.
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Anonymous2008-12-12 5:59
thanks, I'm the guy who uses の and asked the question but still a little confused.
So dictionary form plus の is fine, but is か just as acceptable? Does it send a slightly different feeling? To me, 勉強してるか？ sounds kind of weird where 勉強してるの？ sounds more natural.
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Anonymous2008-12-17 3:58
>>438
Both expressions are ok, but they have slightly different connotations.
When you say 勉強してるか？, the question implies they have to be studying now. So, if you say that directly to someone who you think should be studying now, it can be a rhetorical question.
勉強してるの？ is always neutral. It's just a question.
If you ask a friend if his brother is studying and say, "弟は勉強してるか？", you may be worried about his brother because you think your friend's brother should be studying now.
If you say 勉強してるか？ to someone directly, you could mean "I hate to say it, but are you studying?"
When people I don't know talk to me in Japanese and ask me a question, I don't know how to ask the same question back to them without using words like anata. I obviously don't know their name so that's no good.
The only thing I can think of is just saying 貴方は？ but I've always been told to refrain from using the anata word, plus if you're talking to a superior or something it's rude I believe.