What does “zettai” mean in Japanese?
Native speakers say “zettai” to mean ‘absolutely’, ‘definitely’, or such in Japanese. In this blog post, I will explain this word in detail based on tis kanji expression. And also, I will explain how to use it through the example sentences. My explanations would help Japanese learners to understand “zettai” more clearly. Then, let’s get started!
Contents
Definitions and meanings of “zettai”
Let me start with the definitions and meanings of “zettai”.
- zettai – 絶対 (ぜったい) : a noun, but quite often used as an adverb to say ‘absolutely’, ‘definitely’, or such in Japanese.
Native speakers often use this as an adverb to make an emphasized expression with adding the meaning of ‘absolutely’, ‘definitely’, or such in Japanese. When they use it as a noun, it refers to something which cannot be compared to the other things.
The definitions and meanings are not that difficult, I think. To understand this word more clearly, however, let me explain its kanji characters in detail, one by one.
Zettai in kanji
The kanji expression of “zettai” consists of the following two characters:
- 絶 : a kanji character used to deny the existence of things.
- 対 : a kanji character often used to mean ‘pair’, ‘couple’, or the two things in combination.
From these two kanji characters, we can understand that “zettai” can refer to a thing which cannot make a pair. This literal interpretation is not completely in line with the meanings, but still very close, I think. A thing which cannot make a pair is most likely something which cannot be compared to the other things.
When we meet new kanji expressions, we should check their kanji characters in detail to understand their meanings clearly and deeply. In many cases, kanji characters tell us a lot about meanings of words they form. Actually, here, we could get the better understanding of “zettai” through the detailed kanji check above.
Then, let me explain how to use “zettai” through the example sentences below.
Example #1: how to say “definitely” in Japanese
kare wa zettai kuru to it ta – 彼は絶対来ると言った (かれはぜったいくるといった)
He said he would definitely come.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- kare – 彼 (かれ) : a pronoun meaning ‘he’ in Japanese.
- wa – は : a binding particle working as a case marker or topic marker. In the example, this works after “kare” to make the subject in the sentence.
- kuru – 来る (くる) : a verb meaning ‘to come’ in Japanese.
- to – と : a case particle working as a quote marker. In the example, this works after “zettai kuru” to indicate what he said.
- it – 言っ (いっ) : one conjugation of the verb, “iu”, which means ‘to say’, ‘to tell’, or such 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 Japanese ta form. In the example, this is used after “it” to make its past tense form, “it ta”.
This is a typical usage of “zettai”. In this example, it works to make the emphasized expression with adding the meaning of ‘definitely’. When we want to say “definitely”, “absolutely”, or such in Japanese, this word is a very good option.
Example #2: another usage of “zettai”
watashi wa yakusoku wo zettai mamoru – 私は約束を絶対守る (わたしはやくそくをぜったいまもる)
I will definitely keep my promise.
Below are the new words used in the example sentence.
- watashi – 私 (わたし) : a pronoun meaning ‘I’ in Japanese.
- yakusoku – 約束 (やくそく) : a noun meaning ‘promise’ 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 “yakusoku” to make the object in the sentence.
- mamoru – 守る (まもる) : a verb meaning ‘to save’, ‘to keep’, ‘to defend’, or such in Japanese. In the example, this works as a part of the commonly-used expression, “yakusoku wo mamoru”, which means ‘to keep a promise’ in Japanese.
This is another typical usage of “zettai”. Again, it works to make the extremely emphasized expression. This is just an example, but liars often use this sentence.
Summary
In this blog post, I’ve explained the definitions and meanings of “zettai” based on its kanji expression. And also, I’ve explained how to use it through the example sentences. Let me summarize them as follows.
- zettai – 絶対 (ぜったい) : a noun, but quite often used as an adverb to say ‘absolutely’, ‘definitely’, or such in Japanese. These two kanji characters literally mean a thing which cannot be compared to the other things. Native speakers quite often use this as an adverb to make an extremely emphasized expression. When they use this as a noun, it refers to something which cannot be compared to the other things.
Hope my explanations are understandable and helpful for Japanese learners.
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