かた / ほうほう Japanese Grammar Lesson
Grammar Type: Suffix
Essential Meaning: Way of / Manner of / How to
Construction:
- Verb ます-Form + 方
- E.g. 話し方 [Way / Manner of speaking]
- E.g. 食べ方 [Way / Manner of eating]
- Sino-Japanese する-Verb + の仕方
- E.g. 料理の仕方 [Way of Cooking / Manner of cooking]
Notes:
- かた (方 in kanji) refers to a way of doing something (i.e. “How to do X“) or a manner of doing something (i.e. “The manner of doing X“). For example, 方 can be used to say things such as “Manner of speaking“, “How to draw“, “How to play” “Manner of dress“, et cetera. The precise connotation depends largely on context. For example, if I say 柔らかい話し方, I am referring to a “soft manner of speaking.” If I say やり方がわからない, I’m saying “I don’t know how to do it“.
- Sino-Japanese verbs that take the form Verb + する (e.g. 勉強する [To study], 電話する [To call], 説明する [To explain], 料理する [To cook]) require the structure の + しかた (仕方 in kanji).
- E.g. 勉強の仕方 [Way of studying / Manner of studying]
- E.g. 電話の仕方 [Way of making a telephone call / Manner of making a telephone call]
- E.g. 説明の仕方 [Way of explaining / Manner of explaining]
- E.g. 料理の仕方 [Way of cooking / Manner of cooking]
- E.g. 日本語の勉強の仕方を教えてください。 [Please teach me how to study Japanese.]
- When 方 refers to a way of doing something, 方 is interchangeable with ほうほう (方法 in kanji). 方法 means “Method” or “Method of doing“, which is basically synonymous with “Way of doing“.
- E.g. 日本語の勉強の方法を教えてください。[Please teach me the method of studying Japanese.]
- E.g. 日本語の勉強の仕方を教えてください。[Please teach me how to study Japanese.]
Example Sentences:
ケーキの作り方を教えてください。[Please teach me how to make a cake.]
この漢字の書き方がわかりません。[I don’t know how to write this Kanji.]
あの人の歩き方は面白いですね。[That person’s manner of walking is interesting, isn’t it?]
日本語の勉強の仕方を教えてください。[Please teach me how to study Japanese.]
WILD Examples:
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