日本語 Japanese Ask Questions Thread 6

If you have a question about the language, ask it and fellow 4channers might see it and answer it for you.

Japanese - Ask questions thread
http://dis.4chan.org/read/lang/1174719097/1-40

日語 Japanese Ask Questions Thread2 質問
http://dis.4chan.org/read/lang/1206158123/1-40

日本語 Japanese Ask Questions Thread 3
http://dis.4chan.org/read/lang/1267485093/1-40

日本語 Japanese Ask Questions Thread 4
http://dis.4chan.org/read/lang/1302350850/1-40

日本語 Japanese Ask Questions Thread 5
http://dis.4chan.org/read/lang/1330050873/1-40

>>678
>>679
>>680

Thanks, it got extremely obvious when I read it again. I was too focused on よければいい when I should've cut off at 自分さえよければ.

Could someone please explain 素直 to me? I always hear contradictory explanations of what it means.

>>682
（形動）[文]ナリ

(1)性格や態度にひねくれたところがなく、あえて人に逆らったりしないさま。
「―な子」「―に従う」
(2)技芸などに癖がないさま。
「―な字を書く」
(3)物の形がまっすぐであるさま。
「―なるその一ふしもならふやと植ゑてや見まし窓の呉竹/新葉（雑中）」
(4)飾り気がなくありのままであるさま。
「神世にはうたのもじもさだまらず―にして/古今（仮名序）」
［派生］ ――さ(名)

>>682

You're going to have to be specific. >>683 is the best anyone can do without understanding why you are finding it difficult.

>>683
性格や態度にひねくれたところがなく、あえて人に逆らったりしないさま
1)Without the appearance of perversity in personality, manner, or attitude. Or even some one who does not stand contrary to others. 

2)技芸などに癖がないさま
Having no particular distinction with regard to art or the like

3)物の形がまっすぐであるさま
The direct or unpretentious form of things

4)飾り気がなくありのままであるさま
As it simply is without pretension or show. 

---

What more do you want to know?

>>685
>Or even some one who does not stand contrary to others. 

you're parsing it wrong, though the meaning doesn't change much. It's referring to those who do not stand against others in the face of opposition. あえて is kind of weird in that it's used in many situations where in English we wouldn't say anything.

>Having no particular distinction with regard to art or the like

maybe I'm just misunderstanding your English, but it's talking about not having particular style or habits in art (i.e., always curving ones strokes in a particular [likely incorrect] manner, etc)

>>686
>It's referring to those who do not stand against others in the face of opposition.
Pretty much the same thing dude. "Dare to go against" etc.

>it's talking about not having particular style or habits in art
"Distinction" encompasses that.

>>687
>Pretty much the same thing

No, there is no "or" or "even" in the original. This is a significant difference.

>"Distinction" encompasses that

Ok, I haven't heard that used that way, which is why I thought maybe I was misunderstanding you.

>>688

>no "or"
I take that back, there is an "or", but it doesn't warrant splitting the sentence. You make it sound like it is two separate possibilities, rather than all describing one appearance or state.

>>688
>No, there is no "or" or "even" in the original.

Prescriptive much? The translation is fine.

>>690

It's not a matter of being prescriptive. "or even someone . . . " does not make sense as a translation,  liberal or literal, for ～あえて人に逆らったりしないさま. It does not list 人に逆らう as an extreme condition within the definition.

>>691
You said yourself the meaning doesn't change much. You're worried about how it sounds. It think you're just worrying to much.

>>691
Different anon but I don't see a problem with "splitting" the sentences. That's fine. The use of "even", I think, is your concern. It (even) doesn't necessarily indicate only an extreme condition but, yes, it can sound that way. It's usage might be covered in the tari form, trying to show that "not defying" isn't the only action but only an example of it (i.e. "things like" "even this thing", its not that hard to imagine). In that way, the translation does its job. But I agree with you that the guy's translation might sound like there are two separate usages. Let's say something like "Without harboring perversity in personality, manner, or attitude, not standing in opposition to others" and leave it at that. You can try to do away with the double negative, if it really bothers you.

>>692

I'm worried about how it sounds because it sounds (at least to me) like you are listing "not daring to defying against others" as a particularly extreme case of 素直. >>693 is right though and I will drop this.

I have a question about the (Japanese) dialog in the end of the Gundam Wing: Endless Waltz animation. The English dub translates the line as (basically) "Mobile suits and gundams disappeared forever). I've heard that this was an inaccurate translation of the Japanese. I tried writing it out (the Japanese) and trying to figure it out on my own, but I haven't had any luck.

The line(s) sound like:

afuta coroni 197 hitobito motto ni heiwa ha modotta

soshite sono gou no rekishi no naka de gandamu wo fuku mobiru sutsu to yuu heiki no sonzai wa

nidotto sono sugata wo arawasu koto wa nakatta

...

I'd really appreciate it if someone could translate that bit (directly) for me, and I'd also really love it if I could see the whole Japanese bit written out w/ the kanji so I can save it for reference.

>>695
Liberal translation. Some errors are probably both your and my fault.

afuta coroni 197 hitobito motto ni heiwa ha modotta
アフタコロニー197人々もと(not motto ni)に平和は戻った。
After Colony 197 (The year, I assume), peace returned to the lives of (the) people. 

soshite sono go  no rekishi no naka de gandamu wo fuku mobiru sutsu to yuu heiki no sonzai wa
そして、その後(not sono gou)の歴史の中でガンダムを吹くモビルスーツという兵器の存在は、
And, following the history of those events, the existence of the mobile suit weapon heralded as "Gundam"

nidotto sono sugata wo arawasu koto wa nakatta
二度とその姿を現すことはなかった
never again emerged.

>>695
If the subs say "Mobile suits and gundams disappeared forever", than yes, its not a very accurate line. But if it was intended for the last two lines, then it could pass as lazy translating or necessary because of screen time, formatting, etc.

>>697
>>696
Thanks. I asked because fans sometimes point at that line as a "bad" aspect of the show, because they dislike this notion that peace reigned forever and there was never any war again, etc., etc. that the final narration (in the dub) seemed to present.

>>696
Thank you for that. How is 人々 pronounced? I thought for sure I heard 4 syllables. Or, wait... is the second character kanji? Or just a really small ma?

>>698
hitobito

It's kanji, くりかえし, but it just informs the reader that the sound of the previous kanji occurs again.

>>698

You should get an addon such as rikaichan, it will help with readings. It's ひとびと.

Hey people, I've never posted here before so I'm sorry if I'm asking the wrong kind of thing in the wrong thread. Or board, for that matter.

It's been about a full year since I took a year (2 semesters) of Japanese. I'm getting a bit rusty. Are there any good tools, either online or retail, I can use to study so I can get in shape to take more classes next semester?

I've still got all of my vocabular and kanji flashcards from the Genki I and Genki II textbooks, but just doing flashcards all the time is... really tedious. Anyone have any ideas?

Trying to understand the difference between 目標 and 目的. From what I've read, I'm thinking 目標 is, relatively speaking, short term goals, as in "Today I hope to get so-and-so done" or "This year I'm hoping to get so-and-so done" kind of goals. While 目的 is closer to a reason for existing, like "The organisation's goal is..." etc. Would that be correct, or have I completely misunderstood?

Thanks.

>>702
Again, as with all these synonyms, they mean essential the same thing and can be used interchangeably in most situations. It's the difference between "goal" 目的 and "objective" 目標 Most Japanese people will use them interchangeably but with slightly different flavor.

The largest difference is obvious when you break down the kanji. 目的 (eye and target/object). The idea in the kanji is you're like a hunt chasing down your target. Its mainly used for abstract ideas, goals, thoughts, etc. Yes, what is abstract depends on who you talk to but, again, that's the idea.

目標 (eye and mark/sign), on the other hand, is the opposite. It's used with non-abstract, more firm ideas or goals. The idea presented in the kanji is that you can see your goal on paper and follow a process or something to complete it. It's important to note that most people use 目標 for about anything, while 目的 is (usually unconsciously) reserved for grand, abstract, distant ideas.

>>703
Here's a clear explanation in Japanese:

目標とは目的を達成するために目指すべき行動や道筋を具体的に示したもの。
An objective is something that specifically indicates the actions or direction one should make a priority (aim for) in order to accomplish one's goal

It's pretty much the same in English.

>>701
listen to some japanese songs, read some manga/novel/vn?
get used to looking at runes again
maybe flip through taekim's guide for a refresher

I'm not >>702 but reading that made me think; what is the normal word used for a sign? Like a traffic sign or a sign that indicates your current location. Also, what's the word for a sign in more a figurative sense like "There are no signs of infection".

On another matter, how do I say "Right now" with a nuance that says "but will most likely change in a near future".
Like: "Right now, nothing is more fun than Japanese(studies)." but that will probably no longer be the case in a few weeks/months.

>>706
看板　is a general sign
目印　is a mark or landmark that general points to something
合図 is a sign or signal that can be physical or metaphorical etc.
(you could have probably figured all that out by yourself though. Use a dictionary.)

I would say 今のところ、今のところは meaning "for now, right now, as it is now" but 当分、当分の間 (which is a little stinted and rough sounded) means "for the moment, for the time being". When you want a translation, its important to think about what you're REALLY saying in English. Do you mean "right now" as in "at this moment"? Or do you mean "for the time being"? In your case, more so the latter. Think about the context of what you're saying, and you can start to do this by yourself.

What's the difference between はない　じゃない　がない もない?

What do these different particles imply when negating something with ない?

>>708
Difference? A lot. They're not exactly comparable, because only in じゃない are you actually negating anything. ない is actually the negative form of ある ("to exist"). じゃない is the opposite of the plain copula だ (or nothing at all; usually だ is implied when sentences end on a noun) and also a contraction of ではない (which is the negative form of the literary/formal copula である).

お金じゃない "[something] is not money" (like, something you yell when someone tries paying you in beaver furs; may be accompanied by throwing said furs against walls)
お金がない "have no money" (lit: money does not exist)

As for the rest, the question really becomes "what do these different particles mean." They already imply things regardless of whether you're using them with ない.

地震の危険はない。 There is no danger of an earthquake.
Here, the information that is emphasized is ない ("not exist").

地震の危険がない。 There is no danger of an earthquake.
Here, the information that is emphasized is 地震の危険.

地震の危険もない。 There is also no danger of an earthquake [in addition to something previously mentioned that does not exist either].

I've been trying to find an equivalent of shitlord and the closest approximation I could find was 糞の主は or 糞主.  Can anyone confirm this?  Shitlord is usually used to label people like the ones in second life so I have a feeling that 糞 isn't exactly correct.

I also want to find out how to say "eat shit, shitlord."  The closest I can come up with is くそくらえ but I'm not sure where to put 糞主.

Also is there an equivalent to glorious nippon?

>>710
Shitlord isn't even a word in English. And unlike western languages, you can't just through two words together and call it an insult in Japanese. 糞 isn't exclusively "shit" as in poop, it has other meanings.

But if you want to do this stupid shit, yes, 糞王様 or the like would be the rough equivalent. くそくらえ, 糞王様 would be the correct order. I don't know if there's a phrase that actually contains the same sarcasm and irony as the "glorious nippon" meme but 輝かしい/素晴らしい/栄えある　日本 would all be direct translations.

>>710
What the hell, I don't even...

Pretty elementary question compared to other ones here:  What does the statement 調子乗るな mean?  I've come across it a few times and have just been interpreting it as something equivalent to "watch your tone" for the time being, but I have no idea if that's correct or even close to being correct.

>>713

Just look up 調子に乗る. It means to be full of oneself or to go too far.

This might be a bit of a wieghty request but could anyone translate these track names? Google translate's results sound a bit off.

http://jpddl.com/music/143755-album-haisuinonasa-body-of-the-animal-flac-lossless-cd-20120523.html

>>715
動物の身体 body of the animal
ある夜の呼吸 a certain night's breath
地下鉄の動態 subway movements/dynamics
波の始まり the wave's beginning
水の形、面の終わり the water's form, the surface's end
モービル mobile
森と証明 forest and proof
落下から衝突まで from the fall to the conflict

Thanks very much, are there any other possible translations for 2 and 3?

Just those two sound a little weird.

>>716
>>717
I would interpret 地下鉄の動態 as "the subway's rhythms" (as in vitals) but that's a bit more liberal

>>718
Hm, I think The Subway's Movements would be about right

Also, any alternatives for "forest and proof" that sounds odd

>>719
It's really splitting hairs because I honestly don't care but "The Subway's Movements" doesn't include the sense of change that 動態 elicits. 動態 is not "movement", but the conditions that contain movement, a fluctuation or variation.

Also, 落下から衝突まで should not use "conflict" but collision. "From the fall to the collision", "On the way down", "After the fall and before the hit", those ideas.

証明 can be proof, verification, validity, demonstration, authentication, literally anything in English that contains the ideas of "proof" and "bringing forth"/"enlightening"