複合動詞. A compound functioning as a single verb.
Questions tagged [compound-verbs]
58 questions
14
votes
1 answer
Etymology of 見舞い
Visiting someone in hospital clearly involves seeing that person. But dancing? Does 舞 have some other, relevant meaning? Did it pertain to a traditional, sacred dance for health? Or is this ateji?
Mathieu Bouville
- 2,146
- 5
- 19
10
votes
2 answers
Verb + うる form. What is this?
Can't really understand this form:
I've seen already this form with 考える and translated it like this:
考えうることだ - conceivable (possible)
However how do you translate with other verbs? is this some kind of…
matreya
- 115
- 1
- 7
9
votes
2 answers
The meaning of 殺しても殺したりねぇ
I found this in a video game. It says 「殺しても【ころしても】殺したりねぇ【ころしたりねぇ】」. So, my rough estimate was "Even killing (you) won't kill you". Is this correct? Also, what type of sentence is this?
Williem F.
- 887
- 7
- 18
8
votes
1 answer
When to use ます-stem + かかる
Watching a drama I came across the sentence
犯人は背後から女性に近づき、殴りかかった。
I would have translated it like:
The perpetrator came up from behind and hit the woman.
Unfortunately I am not to confident in my interpretation since I don't really understand…
Anna
- 251
- 1
- 8
7
votes
1 answer
Semantic meaning of 出 in 出会う, 出来る, etc
There seems to be many Japanese verbs that are mysteriously compounded with 出る, like 出来る and 出会う. What is the actual semantic role of the 出? I'm especially curious about the difference between 会う and 出会う.
ithisa
- 3,025
- 19
- 41
6
votes
1 answer
What's the difference between ～かかる and ～ところだ
After reading this question on this site, I learned that ～かかる following a verb-stem can be translated as "about to ~"; the example in the original question being 殺されかかった, or "about to be killed" (as per the accepted answer).
My question is, I have…
Ertai87
- 437
- 2
- 8
6
votes
1 answer
Why some of the ren'youkeis (masu stem forms) have different meanings when they form compound verbs?
The following are taken from the 新明解国語辞書.
取り [接頭語的に] 動詞に冠し、「十分に、慎重に、確実に」などの意を加える。「ーあつかう・ーつくろう・ー調べる」
打ち 動詞の上に冠して、「ちょっと・すっかり・よく」などの意を表わす。「ー見る・ー明ける・ー沈む・ー興ずる・ー砕く」
and there are more examples like this. However, the corresponding verbs 「取る」「打つ」 do not…
Weijun Zhou
- 456
- 2
- 13
6
votes
1 answer
What is the difference between "verb-stem + verb" and "verb-て form + verb"?
例: 吸い取る 対 吸って取る
例: 噛み殺す 対 噛んで殺す
たしかに、意味は同じではないけど似ています。区別は何でしょうか。
What is the difference in meaning between the above verb pairs, and which construction would be used when?
quantum231
- 1,163
- 3
- 14
- 19
6
votes
1 answer
Compound verb in Japanese; verb(te form)+verb vs verb(masu stem form)+verb
I have seen two type of compound verbs in Japanese, in one type the first verb is used in its "te form", in the second type the first verb is used in the "masu stem form". What difference does the form make of the first verb make to the meaning of…
quantum231
- 1,163
- 3
- 14
- 19
5
votes
2 answers
The translation for 思い切った
あいつ にしちゃ 思い切った な。
I had a hard time to translate this short sentence. And after I looked around from many sources, I found these clues.
思い切った
普通では考えられないような。おどろくほど大胆な。 「 －処置を取る」
source: https://www.weblio.jp/
にしては (= ni shitewa)
(casual…
Amanda Zhang
- 678
- 4
- 9
5
votes
2 answers
わける vs 振り分ける -- What is the ふり doing here?
Consider the following example:
divide the main folder into sub folders (in case of mail)
フォルダを振り分ける
フォルダをわける
What I want to know is why do we add "ふり"? Why can't we just use "フォルダをわけて"?
Abi
- 383
- 4
- 10
5
votes
2 answers
The transitivity of (auxiliary) verbs
In the current section of my textbook, a bunch of verbal compositions was introduced, like:
読み終わり
歩き始め
祈り続け
終わり and 続け are classified as auxiliary verbs on…
Narktor
- 4,767
- 2
- 12
- 31
5
votes
2 answers
Compound verb with きれる
In the sentence:
田中さんは諦めきれなかった。
what is the function/meaning of きれる? I assume the sentence means "Tanaka didn't give up", but how does it differ from 諦めなかった？
user3856370
- 28,484
- 6
- 42
- 148
5
votes
1 answer
In what contexts can "始{はじ}める" be an intransitive verb?
"始める" is transitive while "始まる" is its intransitive form. In a textbook, I discovered:
(1) 知らないうちに、雨が降り始めていた。
(2) 明治時代の初め、日本は急速に近代化しつつあった。
(3) パーティをやっている最中に、急に雨が降り出した。
In each of those sentences, shouldn't an intransitive verb be used?…
david.t
- 1,539
- 9
- 16
4
votes
1 answer
When can you use (masu stem) + (another verb)
Here are some examples of the grammatical structure I am referring to:
(verb A) to (verb B) = (masu stem of verb B) (sometimes に) (verb A conjugated normally)
I went to pick up = 取りに行った
I forgot to ask = 聞き忘れた
I started to eat = 食べ始めた
Right now, my…
John Lee
- 45
- 3