Tips to Speak more Creatively in Japanese
Learning a new language is not just about memorizing vocabulary and grammar. That is a huge part of learning a language but learning to use what you know to express what you are thinking is even more important.
Every language has its own special way of using words to say things in a new and creative way. In order to speak more creatively in Japanese here are a few tips.
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Learn Compound Verbs
In English, many verbs can be transformed into all sorts of new concepts by just adding a preposition or other words. Take the word give:
give up
give away
give off
Or the word take:
take up
take away
take off
Adding the extra word to the verb can change the meaning a little like in take away or change the meaning completely like it give up. Words such as take-off also have multiple meanings
a plane takes off
take the dish off the table
In Japanese, instead of adding a preposition, you add two verbs together to make compound verbs.
取る +戻す → 取り戻す
take + return → take back / recover
Compound verbs can have a range of meanings that are hard to translate from Japanese to English. Often you will need to use the word in context to fully understand its meaning. If you take the time to learn a lot of these words then you will start to get a sixth sense of how to use them. That will give you more expressive power when speaking Japanese allowing you to say more, and have more interesting conversations.
Use lots of Onomatopoeia
Onomatopoeias are words that represent sounds. In English, a cat says meow and a dog, woof. That is about as far as English goes. Japanese however takes onomatopoeia to a new dimension.
Onomatopoeias are words that are part of a concept known as sound symbolism. Basically, this is a concept that the actual sounds in words can have meaning instead of just being arbitrary.
Other than the sounds that animals make, Japanese has similar words that represent other senses such as sight, smell, touch, and so on. Words can also represent psychological states, moods etc. Almost like the words have synesthesia.
Anyway, like compound verbs, onomatopoeias in Japanese are hard to translate. Often the context will decide what they mean. If you learn a lot of these types of words then you get an instant boost on your Japanese speaking creativity.
Common Colocations for Common Words
If you want to speak Japanese then you will need to learn thousands of words. If you want to speak Japanese well you will need to know how to use those words in a multitude of situations.
Luckily, not all words are as versatile as others. The most common words in a language are the most common for a reason. The more common a word is then that means the more situations it can be used in. That means that the actual words may have multiple meanings, or that they mean different things in different situations, or even that they are just common concepts that show up a lot.
Whatever the reason, after learning some common Japanese words don’t stop there. Read a lot and try to learn all of the situations and phrases those words can be used it. Learn what types of words come before and after those words. Once you get a good handle on what other words show up around these common words you will better be able to create your own sentences and say interesting unique things.
