問う

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Japanese

Kanji in this term
問
と
Grade: 3
kun'yomi

Etymology

⟨to1pu⟩ → */tʷopu/ → /toɸu/ → /tou/

From Old Japanese.

Pronunciation

  • Tokyo pitch accent of conjugated forms of 「問う」
Source: Online Japanese Accent Dictionary
Stem forms
Terminal (終止形)
Attributive (連体形) 		問う とう
Imperative (命令形) 問え とえ
Key constructions
Passive 問われる とわれる
Causative 問わせる とわせる
Potential 問える とえる
Volitional 問おう とおー
Negative 問わない とわない
Negative perfective 問わなかった とわなかった
Formal 問います といます
Perfective 問うた とーた
Conjunctive 問うて とーて
Hypothetical conditional 問えば とえば

Verb

問(と)う • (tou) ←とふ (tofu)?transitive godan (stem 問(と)い (toi), past 問(と)うた (tōta))

  1. to ask; to inquire
  2. to accuse (of a crime)
  3. to care (about), have regard (for)

Conjugation

The past and conjunctive forms are conjugated as 問(と)うた (tōta) and 問(と)うて (tōte) respectively, rather than 問(と)った (totta) and 問(と)って (totte)

Conjugation of "問う" (See Appendix:Japanese verbs.)
Katsuyōkei ("stem forms")
Mizenkei ("imperfective") 問わ とわ towa
Ren’yōkei ("continuative") 問い とい toi
Shūshikei ("terminal") 問う とう tou
Rentaikei ("attributive") 問う とう tou
Kateikei ("hypothetical") 問え とえ toe
Meireikei ("imperative") 問え とえ toe
Key constructions
Passive 問われる とわれる towareru
Causative 問わせる
問わす 		とわせる
とわす 		towaseru
towasu
Potential 問える とえる toeru
Volitional 問おう とおう toō
Negative 問わない とわない towanai
Negative continuative 問わず とわず towazu
Formal 問います といます toimasu
Perfective 問うた とうた touta
Conjunctive 問うて とうて toute
Hypothetical conditional 問えば とえば toeba
Classical conjugation of "問ふ" (ハ行四段活用, see Appendix:Japanese verbs.)
Stem forms
Irrealis (未然形) 問は とは tofa
Continuative (連用形) 問ひ とひ tofi
Terminal (終止形) 問ふ とふ tofu
Attributive (連体形) 問ふ とふ tofu
Realis (已然形) 問へ とへ tofe
Imperative (命令形) 問へ とへ tofe
Key constructions
Negative 問はず とはず tofazu
Contrasting conjunction 問へど とへど tofedo
Causal conjunction 問へば とへば tofeba
Conditional conjunction 問はば とはば tofaba
Past tense (firsthand knowledge) 問ひき とひき tofiki
Past tense (secondhand knowledge) 問ひけり とひけり tofikeri
Perfect tense (conscious action) 問ひつ とひつ tofitu
Perfect tense (natural event) 問ひぬ とひぬ tofinu
Perfect-continuative tense 問へり
問ひたり		 とへり
とひたり		 toferi
tofitari
Volitional 問はむ とはむ tofamu

Derived terms

Idioms

References

  • 2002, Ineko Kondō; Fumi Takano; Mary E Althaus; et. al., Shogakukan Progressive Japanese-English Dictionary, Third Edition, Tokyo: Shōgakukan, →ISBN.
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