子供向けの映画. 〜向け is a suffix meaning ‘oriented towards/targeted at’. I believe it’s usually followed by の. It can also be used before だ・です at the end of a sentence.
6 Likes
Thanks 
1 Like
I am almost done with Genki 2. Which Tobira book do I buy? lol i assume i don’t need to get the kanji one since wanikani lol
Well, you can get the kanji book if you want to practice writing, but otherwise the main book and the grammar book will do. Though come to think of it, I can’t really recall using the grammar book much - it’s called the grammar book, but it’s pretty much just practice exercises.
1 Like
Ok thanks might just get both since my grammar could always use improving
Yes, the main reason I didn’t like Tobira is because it barely explains the grammar and then has a ton of exercises, many of which are so open ended that they require a teacher/native to tell you if you’re right.
4 Likes
Personally I always pair Tobira with A Dictionary of Basic/Intermediate Japanese Grammar. I did not find the explanations in Tobira alone to be particularly helpful.
1 Like
Does anyone have more information on (お)やしろ? I was asking a coworker for what the word is for those little tiny shrines you see on the side of the road sometimes and my coworker said it was the home of the 神. If I look it up in Japanese, I absolutely get photos of what I’m talking about, but if I try to look it up with romaji, I only get an anime character. Also when I try to do a web search, I don’t get useful results, just websites for buying one. Japanese Wikipedia doesn’t seem to have the answer either.
I don’t have the language abilities to ask my coworker more about them 
Your description made me think of 祠 (ほこら). Is it a different kind of small shrine? Incidentally, that’s also what the shrines in Breath of the Wild are called.
It looks pretty similar on Google images, although slightly bigger than what I usually see. ほこら look a little big to carry to your arms, but the ones I’m thinking of could be carried by a single person with two good arms I think.
My understanding of 社 was just as “shrine” and when I search for it I see shrines of all sizes.
1 Like
I searched for it just in hiragana and got the smaller results. I’m trying to remember if my coworker wrote it out in romaji or hiragana now…
It’s good to know now that it’s apparently a catch all word for all types of Shinto shrines.
Non-native speaker.
中止 Suspension: is that like chemistry, like waiting for Christmas, or like something stopped for now?
1 Like
Something stopped for now.
This is just Suspense, I think.
1 Like
Can someone give me a list of people that would count as 家族? Dictionary entries (that I saw) don’t actually specify, besides saying that different people have different opinions. But I’m just looking for a list that would generally be considered right. Best I can tell, it would include your parents and siblings. Does it include grandparents? Anyone else?
Then there’s 親類 and 親戚 which seem to be synonyms (ish?). Do they include all blood relatives other than your 家族? Is it wrong to include your 家族 in those words? Are there any limitations or can a second cousin and a great aunt be considered 親類 and 親戚?
Regarding the limitations of 親戚 and 親類. There is a legal definition for 親族, it includes everyone within 6 degrees of kinship to you. Your parents would be 1 degree, your grandparents and your siblings 2 degrees, your aunt would be 3 degrees, and so on. So a great aunt and a second cousin would definitely count as your 親族.
It also includes people you’re related to by marriage up to 3 degrees of kinship.
Here is a pdf detailing the scope of 親族: http://vantean.jp/upfiles/shintouzu.pdf
親族 seems to be kind of synonymous to 親類 and 親戚.
https://mago-koko.com/親戚-親族-親類-違い/
In this article talking about the differences between the three words, they are taking a look at the definitions for 親類 and 親戚. Only the definition for 親類 has 「家族を除く、血族と姻族の総称[…]」, while 親戚 does not have this limitation. That would indicate that 親戚 includes your 家族, while 親類 does not. The article however glosses over that distinction, so I assume they are used synonymously most of the time.
Regarding 家族, I think you would include the people you live with. If you live with your grandparents you include them. If asked 何人家族ですか？, you would normally respond with the amount of people that live in your household.
The 大辞林 definition for 家族 has 「②民法旧規定において、戸主の統率下にある家の構成員」as a definition, stressing the point of being under “one roof” / under “one head of household”. I think this nuance is probably still present today, even if the legal definition is not used anymore (it seems the law was reformed in 1947).
6 Likes
I’m glad there’s a legal definition for something! Thanks for sharing that pdf and article.
Except that it also says 親類 means 親戚 and 親戚 means 親類, which is why I was confused. 
I guess those types of single word definitions are just giving approximate synonyms.
I live by myself, but it doesn’t feel right to say I have no 家族. I can’t find anything to support that viewpoint though.
If someone asked me 家族、何人? I would not respond with my current household… because I have not fully established a family of my own. I would assume they mean “adding your parents and your siblings and yourself together, how many people are there?” In Japan, that group of people might still live together in the same house in some cases… but I still think that’s the intent of such a question even if they aren’t living together. A college student doesn’t lose their family by moving into a dorm.
8 Likes
I’m using Bunpro for grammar, and just came across a different kanji than the one that was taught for 上る：
Is there any difference in meaning between the two, or is one more common usage than the other?