Join Our Newsletter
  • Visit Our Store
  • Come Write for J-List!
J-List Blog
Visit J-List - Your Favorite Online Shop and Friend in Japan
  • Featured
  • News
  • Gallery
  • Product Reports
  • Your Friend in Japan
No Result
View All Result
J-List Blog
  • Featured
  • News
  • Gallery
  • Product Reports
  • Your Friend in Japan
No Result
View All Result
J-List Blog
No Result
View All Result

Four Kana Japanese Words

Peter Payne by Peter Payne
12 years ago
in Your Friend in Japan

There’s a category of four-syllable (or four kana) words used here that are so loaded with meaning they boggle the mind, and I found they were quite fun to study and use. First is せっかくsekkaku (seh-KAH-koo), which carries the implication of having gone to great trouble to do something for someone only to have them not appreciate your efforts. Another fun word is やっぱり yappari (yah-PAH-ree), which means “just as I thought” or “as I expected” or “Aha! I knew you’d be trying to peek into the girl’s bath!” When you learn something that surprises you, you might use the phrase なるほど naruhodo, which can be translated as “wow, I didn’t know that” or “I see your point,” and in a TV drama, a police inspector might mutter this to themselves as a signal to viewers that he’d found another piece of a puzzle. Finally there’s とにかく tonikaku (toh-nee-kah-koo), which just means “at any rate” “regardless of that fact” or just “anyway.” When my bilingual son was growing up, he got confused and accidentally combined English and Japanese stems to create the hybrid word toni-way (tonikaku + anyway), which has been a running joke in our family ever since.

Here are some random Japanese phrases for you.

Tags: familyJapanese language

More Posts Like This

When The Subtitles Substitute Name For Onii Chan
Your Friend in Japan

Onii-chan, No! When Translators Don’t Follow Japanese Naming Conventions

by Peter Payne
7 months ago

How do you feel when you're watching anime and a character uses an honorific like "Onii-chan," but the subtitles use...

Japanese Is Similar To Spanish Blog
Your Friend in Japan

Why Is Japanese So Similar to Spanish? Let’s Compare Both Languages!

by Peter Payne
9 months ago

Everyone knows that Japanese is a hard language to learn, right? But I found it surprisingly easy, partly because it...

What Does Bitch Mean In Japanese

Bitch Means What in Japanese?? Nine Times Japan Changed the Meaning of Words

10 months ago
Watashi No Shiawase No Kekkon

‘My Happy Marriage’ is a Serotonin Boost For Your Brain

2 years ago
Learn Japanese Through Anime! Otonari No Tenshi

Learn Japanese With Anime! Otonari no Tenshi-sama Edition

2 years ago
Does Sarcasm Exist In Japan?

Does Sarcasm Exist in the Japanese Language? Let’s Find Out!

3 years ago
Next Post
Jlistfront 334xxo W

My Favorite Summer Festivals in Japan

Trending Today

Stellar Blade Cosplay
Featured

The Hottest Stellar Blade Cosplay—Just Before the PC Release

6 days ago
Yandere Dark Elf Episode 1 Featured Image
Featured

Yandere Dark Elf, Episode 1 — Love Heavier than Chocolate Melons!

2 months ago
The Top 11 Anime Sex Scenes Blog
Your Friend in Japan

Happy Sex Day! Let’s Rank the 11 Most Surprising Ecchi Scenes in Anime

1 week ago
The Top 10 Jav Actresses Article
Your Friend in Japan

The Top 10 JAV Actresses to Browse During J-List’s Sale!

4 days ago
Spring 2025 Ecchi Anime Web Cover
News

Spring 2025 Ecchi Anime and Where to Watch Them

3 months ago
Get the Newest Figures from J-List - Your Favorite Online Shop and Friend in Japan
Megami Magazine And The History Of Anime Poster Magazines
Your Friend in Japan

Anime Posters and Pantsu: How Megami Magazine Shaped 25 Years of Otaku Culture

by Peter Payne
June 16, 2025

Anime Posters and Pantsu: How Megami Magazine Shaped 25 Years of Otaku Culture

The Kanako Tateshiba 1/5.5 Figure Is a Pettanko Lover’s Dream

Legends Return in Yoroi Shin Den Samurai Troopers

Let’s Check Out The New Rikka Ono Photobook FIVE LIVE

Haite Kudasai, Takamine-san, Episode 7 — Peeking Through the Thin Veil

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Discord
  • YouTube

© J-LIST. All trademarks, characters and images are property of their respective owners.

No Result
View All Result
  • Featured
  • News
  • Gallery
  • Product Reports
  • Your Friend in Japan

© J-LIST. All trademarks, characters and images are property of their respective owners.

No Result
View All Result
  • Featured
  • News
  • Gallery
  • Product Reports
  • Your Friend in Japan

© J-LIST. All trademarks, characters and images are property of their respective owners.