Tamatama is a Japanese word for ‘by chance’, explained

What does “tamatama” mean in Japanese?

Native speakers use tamatama often to mean ‘by chance’ in Japanese. Perhaps, some Japanese learners know this word as it is sometimes used in Japanese conversations. In this blog post, however, I’m explaining this word together with example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners understand tamatama more clearly. Then, let’s get started!

Contents

• Definition and meanings of “tamatama”
  • How to say “by chance” in Japanese
  • Another example of “tamatama”
• Summary

Definition and meanings of “tamatama”

Let me start with the definition and meanings of tamatama.

• tamatama – たまたま : an adverb used to mean ‘by chance’ or ‘accidentally’ in Japanese.

Japanese native speakers often use this adverb when something not planned or something not expected happens.

The definition and meanings are simple and clear, I think. Then, let me explain how to use this adverb through the example sentences below.

How to say “by chance” in Japanese

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• yesterday – 昨日 (きのう) : a noun meaning ‘yesterday’ in Japanese. This can also work as an adverb almost anywhere in a sentence. In the example, this works as an adverb at the beginning of the sentence to mean ‘yesterday’ in Japanese.
• watashi – 私 (わたし) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese.
• wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this works after watashi to make the subject in the sentence.
• kanojo – 彼女 (かのじょ) : a pronoun meaning ‘she’ in Japanese.
• ni – に : a case particle used to say in which direction an action goes. In the example, this is used after kanojo to say whom the speaker met by chance.
• at – 会っ (あっ) : one conjugation of the verb, au, which means ‘to meet’ or ‘to see’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.
• ta – た : an auxiliary verb used after a verb, adjective, or auxiliary verb to make its past tense form. Probably, this is well known as a part of the Japanese ta form. In the example, this is used after at to make its past tense form, at ta.

This is a typical usage of tamatama. In this example, it works in the middle of the sentence to mean ‘by chance’ in Japanese.

Another example of “tamatama”

Below are the new words used in the example sentence.

• boku – 僕 (ぼく) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese. This is used mainly by boys and young males.
• kono – この : a determiner used before a noun which refers to something close to the speaker. In the example, this is used before nihongo no hon to mean ‘this Japanese book’ in Japanese.
• nihongo – 日本語 (にほんご) : a noun meaning ‘Japanese’ or more specifically ‘the Japanese language’ in Japanese.
• no – の : a case particle used to join two nouns or noun equivalent words. Normally, the first one can work as a modifier to describe the second. In the example, this is used to join nihongo and hon. The formed phrase literally means a ‘Japanese book’ in Japanese.
• hon – 本 (ほん) : a noun meaning a ‘book’ in Japanese. This can also work as plural. Learn more about Japanese plural.
• wo – を : a case particle used to make the object word in a sentence. In the example, this is used after kono nihongo no hon to make the object in the sentence.
• mitsuke – 見つけ (みつけ) : one conjugation of the verb, mitsukeru, which means ‘to find’ in Japanese. In the example, it has been conjugated for the better connection with its following word.

This is another typical example of tamatama. In this example, it works at the beginning of the sentence to mean ‘by chance’ in Japanese. When we want to mean ‘by chance’ in Japanese, anyway, this adverb is always a very good option.

Summary

In this blog post, I’ve explained the definition and meanings of tamatama together with the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.

• tamatama – たまたま : an adverb used to mean ‘by chance’ or ‘accidentally’ in Japanese. Japanese native speakers often use this adverb when something not planned or something not expected happens.

Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.