Sentence-final particle: Difference between revisions

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===Japanese===

In Japanese, there are many sentence-final particles that are used in formal as well as colloquial speech. Some examples include:

* か: question. It turns a declarative sentence into a question.

* よ: assertive. It means that you are asserting what preceded the particle as information you are confident in. However, it is also used to "soften" the tone of a imperative sentence

* か ''ka'': question. It turns a declarative sentence into a question.

* ね: agreement. Used when the speaker wants to verify or otherwise show agreement with the listener.

* っけ ''kke'': doubt. Used when one is unsure of something. For example, 昨日だったっけ？ (''kinoukinō datta kke''), "Was it yesterday?". Often used when talking to oneself.

* な ''na'': emotion. Used when one wants to express a personal feeling,. oftenMay wishfulbe orused explanation-seeking,to behindstate hisa orfact herin words.which one Forhas example,emotional 寿司を食べたいなぁ (''sushi wo tabetai naa'')investment, "I want to eatexpress sushione's (soadmiration badlyor rightemotional now!)".excitement, to Asoften softeran versionimperative, ofor ね.to encourage Carries a somewhat masculine toneagreement, butas nota limitedmild to any particular genderimperative.

* なあ ''nā'': a lengthened version of the above, expresses strong emotion, either to encourage agreement, as above, or to express one's desires, e.g. 寿司を食べたいなぁ (''sushi wo tabetai naa''), "I want to eat sushi (so badly right now!)".

* さ: casualness. Used repetitively when describing something at length to the listener. Equivalent to the word "like" or "you know" in casual English conversation.

* ね ''ne'': agreement. Used when the speaker wants to verify or otherwise show agreement, reach consensus, or build solidarity with the listener.

* の ''no'': emphatic/informal interrogative/indirect imperative. May be used to form informal questions, or to give some sort of emphasis to one's statement. Depending on intonation and context, it may soften a statement (particularly in women's language), or to strongly assert one's belief in something. In this sense, it may also act as an indirect imperative, by indicating what the speaker believes should happen, thus, what the listener is expected to do.

* さ ''sa'': casualness, assertiveness. Contrasts with ''ne'' in that, where ''ne'' helps build solidarity and agreement, ''sa'' is often used to assert the speaker's own ideas or opinions. It is often used repeatedly in conversation to retain a listener's attention.

* わ ''wa'': soft declarative or emphatic. Used primarily by women, this particle has a meaning similar to ''yo'', but it is less assertive.

* よ ''yo'': assertive. It means that you are asserting what preceded the particle as information you are confident in. However, itparticularly iswhen alsosupplying usedinformation tothe "soften"listener theis tonebelieved ofnot ato imperative sentenceknow.

* ぜ ''ze'': informal hortative/emphatic. Used to push someone to do something, or to remind them of something. In certain contexts, it can carry a threatening overtone.

* ぞ ''zo'': assertive, emphatic. Used to strongly assert the speaker's decisions and opinions, and serves to discourage dissent or protest.

===English===