Genki Chapter 3 Question

What exactly does the が mean in this context?

2 Likes

It’s similar to “but” in English and works essentially the same as けど and its variants, but is more formal:

So a translation would be something like “Sorry, but a café is a little… How about the library?”

3 Likes

When it connects two sentences, does it ALWAYS mean “but” or “however” or can it have a different purpose?

https://jlptsensei.com/learn-japanese-grammar/が-ga-subject-marker-particle/

2 Likes

Yeah, in S1がS2, the が has a somewhat wider use than English “but”, which always sets up a contrast. See the section “が and けど for Providing Context” in the Tofugu article for some examples.

1 Like