Quoting and referring
Conjugations, Stage 2chunk 2 of 4Grammar patterns
Ask whether, pass on what you heard, sum it up, and refer back to what was said.
- -ka dou kawhether or not
- -toorijust as; the way (said, planned, shown)
- -to iebaspeaking of; when you think of
- -to iu koto dait means that; I hear that
- -ni yoru toaccording to
Mix-ups to ieba (speaking of X) vs sou ieba (that reminds me).
-ka dou ka
whether or not
Tucks a yes/no question into a sentence, usually before wakaranai, kiku or shiraberu.
Make it plain form + ka dou ka (noun or na-adjective drops da)
With a question word, use plain ka: 'itsu kuru ka wakaranai'.
kare ga kuru ka dou ka wakannai
I don't know whether he's coming.
彼が来るかどうかわかんない
kare ga kuru ka dou ka wakarimasen
I don't know if he's coming or not.
彼が来るかどうかわかりません
Rank #592 in 3,030 TV dramas
-toori
just as; the way (said, planned, shown)
Something matches what was said or shown; iu toori, 'just as you say', is the most common.
Make it dictionary or -ta form + toori; noun + no toori; noun + doori
'sono toori' = exactly, that's right. 'yotei doori' = as planned.
iwareta toori ni yatta kedo, dame datta
I did exactly what I was told, but it didn't work.
言われたとおりにやったけど、ダメだった
iwareta toori ni yarimashita ga, dame deshita
I did it exactly as instructed, but it didn't work.
言われたとおりにやりましたが、ダメでした
Rank #1038 in 3,030 TV dramas
-to ieba
speaking of; when you think of
Picks up a word just said to shift topic, or names the classic example: 'kyouto to ieba otera'.
Make it noun or plain form + to ieba
Sou ieba is the stand-alone 'that reminds me'. Casual: 'X tte ieba'.
natsu to ieba, yappari suika da yo ne
When you think summer, it's got to be watermelon.
夏といえば、やっぱりスイカだよね
natsu to ieba, yappari suika desu yo ne
Speaking of summer, watermelon is the classic, isn't it?
夏といえば、やっぱりスイカですよね
Rank #3418 in 3,030 TV dramas
-to iu koto da
it means that; I hear that
Sums up or draws a conclusion ('so that means...'), or passes on news you heard.
Make it plain form + to iu koto da
Polite -to iu koto desu
Casual speech says tte koto: 'kyanseru tte koto?'. On the news, '... to iu koto desu' means 'reportedly'.
jaa, kyanseru to iu koto da ne
So that means it's cancelled.
じゃあ、キャンセルということだね
jaa, kyanseru to iu koto desu ne
So it's cancelled, then.
じゃあ、キャンセルということですね
Rank #4024 in 3,030 TV dramas
-ni yoru to
according to
Names the source of what you heard; the sentence usually ends in -sou da, rashii or tte.
Make it noun + ni yoru to
Not the same as -ni yoru, 'it depends on'. -ni yoreba means the same and sounds more formal.
tenki yohou ni yoru to, ashita wa yuki rashii yo
According to the forecast, it's going to snow tomorrow.
天気予報によると、明日は雪らしいよ
tenki yohou ni yoru to, ashita wa yuki da sou desu
According to the weather forecast, it'll snow tomorrow.
天気予報によると、明日は雪だそうです
Rank #4962 in 3,030 TV dramas