Japanese has 2 series of words for numbers: words borrowed from Chinese many centuries ago (Sino-Japanese numbers); and native Japanese numbers Table 1 shows the numbers from 1 to 10, as well as the words for zero, 100, 1,000, 10,000, 100 million, 1012 and 1016. For comparison, I have included the pronunciations of the numbers…… Continue reading Numbers in Japanese and Chinese
Month: February 2026
Some differences in prepositions
Prepositions are some of the trickiest things to get right when learning a language. Many languages (probably all) have prepositions that they use in some circumstances when other languages use a preposition that is not the one that most routine and obvious general translation equivalent. Here is a good example I found in Sugisaki (2016).…… Continue reading Some differences in prepositions
Where did Russian words come from (3)?
In earlier posts, I looked at 78 words that Russian inherited directly from Proto-Indo-European (PIE), the presumed ancestor of the Indo-European family of languages. Those words were: 27 adjectives, 3 adverbs and 5 numerals. https://languagemiscellany.com/2026/01/where-did-russian-words-come-from/ 43 verbs https://languagemiscellany.com/2026/02/where-did-russian-words-come-from-2/ In this post, I look at 56 nouns inherited by Russian directly from PIE. In future posts,…… Continue reading Where did Russian words come from (3)?
The verb that ran away from its inseparable prefix
German often uses inseparable prefixes on verbs. In almost all cases, these prefixes show up in a position where they are attached to verb. But counterintuitively, an inseparable prefix can occasionally appear without its verbal host appearing at all. This post covers such a case. Separable and inseparable verbal prefixes German makes extensive use of…… Continue reading The verb that ran away from its inseparable prefix
Some traditional and simplified Chinese characters
Some Chinese characters have 2 versions, a simplified version (used particularly in mainland China) and a traditional version (used particularly in Taiwan and some overseas Chinese communities). TK Ann (1987) lists 13 of these pairs of characters. Ann lists them because they feature as parts of many other Chinese characters and for space reasons Ann…… Continue reading Some traditional and simplified Chinese characters
We may be losing might
On BBC 4 radio’s Today programme on 12 February, the newsreader talked about reports that ‘55 babies may have survived if they had received better treatment’. The story is shocking, but the use of the modal verb may is also not ideal. To my ear, using may here conveys the idea of possibility: it is…… Continue reading We may be losing might
Vowel harmony in case-marked forms of Hungarian personal pronouns
There is an oddity in how Hungarian vowel harmony works with personal pronouns. Many Hungarian suffixes undergo vowel harmony: when a case marker is suffixed to a noun, the suffix undergoes vowel harmony, but when a personal pronoun is suffixed to a case marking prefix, the prefix determines the vowel in the suffix. The same…… Continue reading Vowel harmony in case-marked forms of Hungarian personal pronouns
Idiomatic negative adjectives in Japanese
In Japanese, the negator nai often combines with verbs to derive idiomatic adjectives which can appear only in a negative form. Table 1 lists some of them. Table 1. Adjectives formed with the negator -nai AdjectiveComponentsMeaningtamara-naibear-negcannot standyarikire-nai finish-negcannot stand, unbearabledoozi-nai upset-negnot upsetniekira-nai decisive-negindecisivewarikire-naisatisfy-negnot satisfiedkamawa-nai care-negnot carekudara-naiworth-negworthless, uninterestingtsumara-naiinterest-negboring, uninterestingkakase-nailack-negnecessarykakasa-nai miss-negnever lacksoguwa-nai fit-negunsuitableyuruga-nai shake-negfirm, solidhakarisire-nai measure-negimmeasurablenorikire-nairide-negnot in…… Continue reading Idiomatic negative adjectives in Japanese
Where did Russian words come from (2)?
In an earlier post, I looked at 35 words that Russian inherited directly from Proto-Indo-European (PIE), the presumed ancestor of the Indo-European family of languages. Those words were 27 adjectives, 3 adverbs and 5 numerals. https://languagemiscellany.com/2026/01/where-did-russian-words-come-from/ In this post, I look at 43 verbs inherited by Russian directly from PIE. In future posts, I will…… Continue reading Where did Russian words come from (2)?
A Celtic language, just not the right one
A branch of the UK supermarket chain Tesco decided to put in some bilingual signs not just English but also the local language, a member of the Celtic family. A commendable and well-intentioned gesture. Unfortunately, the branch is in Cornall and the signs were not in Cornish (Kernewek) but in its Celtic relative Welsh. Apparently…… Continue reading A Celtic language, just not the right one