Japanese Language Stack Exchange
Japanese Language Stack Exchange

Questions tagged [translation]

翻訳. This site does not provide a translation service. However, questions about translation are welcome provided that they have some academic merit. For example, questions about translating uncommon words, phrases that have different meanings in different contexts, and other non-trivial topics.

Translation questions are welcome, but only provided that they have some academic merit, such as uncommon words, phrases that have different meanings in different contexts, and other non-trivial topics.

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What do the shapes △ ◯ ╳ ◻ mean in Japanese? And are there variations in meaning, depending on whether or not the shape is filled?

I am interested in Japanese culture and the symbolism used in Japan, specifically I'd like to know what the △ triangle, ◯ circle, ╳ cross and ◻ square mean to a Japanese person. How are those shapes interpreted and do they vary depending on there…
user17531
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How to say f*** yeah in Japanese

I often get asked about swear words by Japanese people. As I sometimes watch Netflix, I can see how other translators approach these phrases and get helpful hints. Specifically, I'm curious about the phrase 'f*** yeah', expressing strong agreement…
Robert
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The many ways to say "and" in Japanese

In English, we just have one word for the conjunction and which works just fine for many categories, but in Japanese, there are separate words: と joins nouns together in a closed list や joins nouns together in an open list そして does it do something…
hippietrail
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How would one convey "get over it" in Japanese?

As a foreigner in Japan, one has to get used to the fact that some Japanese will compliment you on things that are too mundane to really deserve mention. Like the fact that you can use chopsticks, eat sushi, say 「今日は」, and all that sort of…
Questioner
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Does the Japanese language only have negative terms for flirting?

I am looking for terms in the Japanese language which can describe the act of flirting in a positive light. This probably requires inventing terms to close a lexical gap, because as far as I know, all terms that are related to flirting in Japanese…
Questioner
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Difference between そうです、 ようです and らしいです.

Here are the example sentences. デイビットは料理が上手そうです。 デイビットは料理が上手なようです。 デイビットは料理が上手らしいです。 Firstly, what does デイビット mean as based on reading alone its sounds like 'debit' to me which is a strange name to have. Secondly, all three of these grammar points…
Mononoke
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What does さあ (saa) mean?

I have seen this term used a lot in many different ways. 「さあ、忘れましょうその未来が」 saa, wasuremashou sono mirai ga — in this sense, I assume it means "come". But I have also seen it used as 「でもさあ」 demo saa — which I would assume means "well you know" or some…
Nick C.
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What does the final て in 待ってて signify?

In this scene a young girl, Yotsuba, drops in on her neighbors for some breakfast. The mother who's cooking breakfast says: 「今お父さんの焼いてるからその次ねー。ちょっと待っててー。」 So I guess she's preparing her husbands food first, and tells Yotsuba to hang on for a…
Louis Waweru
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Is there an easily accessible list of terms in the Japanese grammar written both in Japanese and English?

I am a native Japanese speaker with a casual interest in languages. I sometimes have trouble explaining the Japanese grammar in English because I do not know the established English translation of some technical terms in the Japanese grammar such…
Tsuyoshi Ito
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Can someone identify this stamp in a Bible that allowed my roommate's Grandpa to keep it in a POW camp in WW2?

Can someone identify this stamp in a Bible that allowed my roommate's Grandpa to keep it in a POW camp in WW2? Normally Bibles would have been forbidden but apparently this stamp that was inspected regularly allowed him to keep it throughout the…
MattCom
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Is [mathematical] 'analysis' in Japanese the same word as 'fine cuisine' in Japanese?

According to the Fields medal winner Cédric Villani, in the Japanese language the word 'analysis' is (I quote) "the same word" as the word for 'fine cuisine'. Such can be seen in a video of a recorded lecture of him entitled "The Extraordinary…
O0123
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What's bugging the Japanese language?

In my JLPT workbook, it has a section which gives a list of idioms that use [虫]{むし}. 仕事{しごと}の虫 (worker bee) 点取{てんとり}虫 (derogatory term for a student who tries too hard) 虫がいい (selfish) 泣{な}き虫 (cry baby) 弱{よわ}虫 (weakling) 腹{はら}の虫がおさまらない (extremely…
Questioner
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When did you last...?

I am searching for a way to ask a question like "When did you last see her?" or "When did you last do the laundry?, or also "When did we last meet?" Basically, how do you construct a question with this content: "When was the most recent time when X…
Kdansky
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What does よろしくおねがいします mean when departing?

When on business in Japan last year, a Japanese colleague said よろしくおねがいします to me as the group were leaving after dinner. I'm aware of its usage in initial greetings, as is usually taught in textbooks, but what is its English meaning in this context?
MatthewD
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What is 〜からです and when is it used? How does it differ from 〜ですから and 〜んです?

I have seen this expression a few times, and have never quite understood it. In particular, it seems to be equatable both to ですから and to んです, but I can't figure out where it would be used over either of those two expressions. Here is an example I…
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