The Meaning of Nani in Japanese

The Meaning of 'Nani' in Japanese The word nani  Ã¤ ½â€¢ (㠁 ªÃ£  «) in Japanese means what. And depending on the situation, you might, instead, use  nan (㠁 ªÃ£â€šâ€œ). Which term you use depends on the context, in particular, whether you are speaking or writing formally or informally. The sentences below are listed first in a transliteration of the Japanese phrase or sentence, followed by the spelling in Japanese characters- using  kanji,  hiragana, or  katakana  as appropriate- followed by the translation in English. Where indicated, click on the link to bring up a sound file and hear how to correctly pronounce the word or sentence in Japanese. Using Nani or Nan in a Sentence Nani is the more formal and polite term to use when asking a question, as in: Nani  wo  suru  tsumori  desu ka? (㠁 ªÃ£  « ã‚’ 㠁™ã‚‹ 㠁 ¤Ã£â€šâ€šÃ£â€šÅ  㠁 §Ã£ â„¢ 㠁‹)   What do you intend to do? or What are you planning to do? In more casual situations it would  be  fine to use nan. As a general rule,  if the word following what begins with a syllable from the t, n, and d groups, use nan, as in: Nandeshou? (㠁 ªÃ£â€šâ€œÃ£  §Ã£ â€"ょ㠁†) What do you want? More on Using Nan vs. Nani Nan is used before  particles.  A particle is a word that shows the relationship of a word, phrase, or clause  to the rest of the sentence.  Particles are added to the end of sentences to  express the speaker  or writers  emotions, such as doubt, emphasis, caution, hesitation, wonder, or admiration. You might use  nan   with a phrase such as /㠁 ®, /㠁 § (which means of the and is pronounced no de)  and verb da/desu (打㠁 §Ã£ â„¢ ), meaning it is hitting or it is striking. Nani is used before: /㠁‹ (meaning or and pronounced as ka)  and /㠁 « (meaning into a and pronounced as ni). Be careful when you use nan because, for example, if you use  nan  before ka  (/㠁‹), which means or, it would sound like the word nanka  (㠁 ªÃ£â€šâ€œÃ£ â€¹), which means things like. Another example would be if you were to use  nan with  ni (/㠁 «), it would be nanni  (㠁 ªÃ£â€šâ€œÃ£  «), meaning why, but this sounds very much like nannimo  (㠁 ªÃ£â€šâ€œÃ£  «Ã£â€šâ€š), which translates as nothing at all. Using Nani or Nan in Context You might use  nani  or  nan  in a restaurant. Depending on whether you are at a formal business luncheon or a casual eatery, you might use either of these terms. For example, at fast food eatery you might say: Osusume wa nan desu ka.  (㠁Šå‹ §Ã£â€š Ã£  ¯Ã¤ ½â€¢Ã£  §Ã£ â„¢Ã£ â€¹) What do you recommend?Are wa nan desu ka. (㠁‚ã‚Å'㠁 ¯Ã¤ ½â€¢Ã£  §Ã£ â„¢Ã£ â€¹Ã£â‚¬â€š) What is that?   If you are at a more formal eatery, but you dont know what to order, you might ask a fellow diner: Nani ga oishii desu ka. (ä ½â€¢Ã£ Å'㠁Šã â€žÃ£ â€"㠁„㠁 §Ã£ â„¢Ã£ â€¹Ã£â‚¬â€š) What is good? If you are traveling on a train and need to ask for help from a stranger or train conductor, that would be considered a more formal situation in Japan. Thus, you would use  nani  and might say: Tsugi  wa  nani  eki  desu ka.  (æ ¬ ¡Ã£  ¯Ã¤ ½â€¢Ã© §â€¦Ã£  §Ã£ â„¢Ã£ â€¹Ã£â‚¬â€š) What is the next station? However, if you are traveling with a friend, you might use   the informal  nan, as in: Nan-ji  ni  demasu  ka.  (ä ½â€¢Ã¦â„¢â€šÃ£  «Ã¥â€¡ ºÃ£  ¾Ã£ â„¢Ã£ â€¹Ã£â‚¬â€š)   What time does it leave?

Why Some Red Japanese Maples Have Green Leaves

Why Some Red Japanese Maples Have Green Leaves Japanese maples (Acer palmatum) are a small ornamental tree much prized in the landscape. Several cultivars have been developed based on  native species, and the  ones used in landscaping are  chosen for their distinctive colors- bright green, dark  red, or reddish  purple. Red Trees That Turn Green It can come as something of a shock, then, when a tree we picked because of its color begins to change to another color over time. Japanese maples are one such tree in which this frequently happens. Usually, it is a red or purple cultivar that gradually begins  to transform into a green tree, and this can be disappointing if youve selected the tree specifically because of its color.   The Biology of Color Change in Japanese Maples To understand how a trees color can shift, you need to understand how horticulturists obtain those unusual colors in the first place. All true Japanese maples are variants of the sturdy green  Acer palmatum. If you happen to have one of these pure species types, theres almost no chance that your tree will change colors. To produce tree  cultivars with unusual  colors, horticulturists may begin with the original species root-stock, then graft on branches with different characteristics. (There are other ways in which tree cultivars can be created, but this is a common technique used for Japanese maples.)   Many tree cultivars  originally start as a genetic accident or an aberration that appeared on an otherwise normal tree.  If that aberration  was appealing, horticulturists  may then seek to propagate that mistake and create a whole line of trees that duplicate that unusual characteristic. Many trees with variegated  leaves or unique leaf colors or unusual fruits began their lives as sports, or genetic mistakes that were then deliberately cultivated through different methods, including grafting new branches onto hardy rootstocks. In the case of red or purple Japanese maples, branches from trees with desired colors are grafted onto hardier rootstocks that are more durable in the landscape.   On a  Japanese maple, harsh weather or other factors sometimes kill off the grafted branches, which are usually attached to the rootstock near ground level. When this happens, the new branches that sprout (sucker) up from the ground will have the genetic makeup of the original rootstock- which will be green, rather than red or purple. Or,  its possible that new branches may sucker up from below the graft in addition to the red-leaved branches that are grafted onto the tree. In this case, you may suddenly find yourself with a tree that has both green- and red-leaved branches.   How to Correct or Prevent the Problem You may be able to catch the problem before it becomes severe if you periodically inspect the tree and pinch off any small branches that appear below the graft line on the tree. This may result in a tree thats somewhat asymmetrical for a time, but steady work getting rid of the green branches sprouting from below the graft line will eventually return the tree to its desired color. Japanese maples, though, do not tolerate heavy pruning, and because this is a slow-growing tree, it takes patience over time to allow the tree to form a natural shape.   Should your tree lose all its grafted branches- as sometimes happens when Japanese maples are planted in the northern limits of their hardiness zone range- your tree cannot be returned to its red color. All branches that sucker up from below the graft will be green in color. You can either learn to love the green Japanese maple or replace the tree.