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Questions tagged [second-person-pronouns]

二人称代名詞. Second-person pronouns like あなた, きみ, and おまえ (cf. English "you").

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Can you use "anata" with people you don't know well?

I have read repeatedly that the pronoun "anata" (meaning "you") is very personal and should not be used. But to say something like "Which car is yours?" I would say "Dono kuruma ga anata no desu ka?" I don't really know a way around phrasing it that…
temporary_user_name
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Is it offensive to say あなた?

My teacher says that we should avoid あなた, like わたし, which could be taken off. Following this, I try to refer to the second person by the name: 加藤さんの趣味は何ですか. But there are situations where we forget the name. How can we say "You" without being rude,…
daniel tomio
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In actual Japanese society, how often are second-person pronouns used?

My Japanese professor (I'm in first-year Japanese) advised us to primarily avoid the use of second-person pronouns like あなた or 君 or おまえ throughout the year, and essentially treated their utterance as something of a faux pas. However, I've been…
voxanimus
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When referring to in-laws using 義理, do you use the familial term relative to yourself or to your spouse?

When using terms such as 義理のお兄さん and 義理の弟, do you choose お兄さん vs 弟 relative to your own age, or relative to your spouses age? If you are older than your spouse, but said spouse's older brother is younger than you, which term is appropriate? I assume…
jkerian
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Addressing a friend's parents when meeting them for the first time

I have met the parents of a close Japanese friend two times in my life and have never been sure how I should address them. Both times I've asked the friend beforehand but never got a satisfactory answer. One friend said I could just call her parents…
Robin
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俺 and 僕 used as second person singular pronouns

I often see couples where the girl sometimes speaks to her boyfriend using 俺 as a 'you'. Where does it come from? Can other pronouns like 僕、私、あたし, etc. can be used the same way?
oldergod
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Why is "kisama" more refined than "temee"?

From Wikipedia:  –§–  貴様 — formerly an extremely honorific form of address; in modern speech is as insulting as, but more refined than, "temee" 貴様 is often said (by textbooks) to be the most insulting word used refer to someone, even more…
Pacerier
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Is it acceptable to use あなた when referring to a superior indirectly?

I know that generally あなた shouldn't be used when referring to superiors. However, I find it difficult to rephrase the following sentences which refer to a superior using あなた in an indirect manner: 彼はあなたが日本語の先生だと言いました。 He said you are a Japanese…
Ofek Aman
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Is there a less formal way to say あなた？

My friend told me I sound too polite when I say あなた, but my book only uses that for second person pronoun. Are there multiple ways to say it and if so, which one is best to use with friends?
Friso
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A polite way to say " this person"

What do I say in Japanese when I'm trying to imply, "This is my dad", "These are my parents", "This is my friend(female)" or "This is my manager"? I don't think using これ is polite, nor will 彼 be appropriate.
Venkatesh Kumar
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When is it appropriate to use お宅 to refer to the second-person?

An answer to "What is the most natural way to refer to someone when you don't know their name and don't have a close relationship with them?" suggests that お宅 may be used to refer to the second person. When is (or was) the use of お宅 appropriate?…
Flaw
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Pronoun collocations

I have embarked on a project of translating a novel I am writing into Japanese in parallel with writing it, and one of the hardest parts for me (in contemplation, I haven't really gotten that far) is figuring out what pronouns are appropriate for…
archaephyrryx
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Generic title for children redux & referring to self in the context of children

Continuing from this question 1. Generic title for children redux Consider the following cases for each situation where a person speaks to two children of different age: How are the following done for the 2 situations below: A: A person (you/I)…
Flaw
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Appropriate context for お前【まえ】

When I was learning about 持ってくる【もってくる】 in college we did some roleplaying to practice using it. When my turn came up it was a husband and wife, with a line along the lines of the following: あなたはビールを持ってこい。 (Context: I was playing the husband,…
Kaji
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What's the significance of this female character's use of おまえ?

I'm accustomed to thinking of おまえ, in modern Japanese, as a second-person pronoun and form of address that is used by men and boys with their inferiors or equals. But in 『少年と犬』, by 馳星周, there's a forty-year-old female character, 紗英{さえ}, who uses おまえ…
Nanigashi
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