Grammar Info

N3 Lesson 6: 23/24

かと言(い)うと ②If you ask me..., If I had to say, If I were to say, If I were to choose one, I'd rather

Structure

Question Word + (の(1)) + かというと(2)
Question Word + Phrase + (の(1)) + かというと(2)

(1) ん
(2) かといえば

Details

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About ～かというと ②

～かというと is a phrase that has two primary functions. The first is used in conjunction with 'why' and 'how' words, while the other is used with 'who', 'when', 'where', 'which' or 'what'. We will focus on the latter in this lesson. かというと is a combination of the case marking particle か in its use as a question marker, the case marking particle と in its citation use, the う - Verb 言(い)う 'to say', and the case marking particle と in its result use.

This is quite a few particles combined together, but the literal meaning is more simply 'if (A) were to be asked', before the speaker will go on to highlight their reasoning in (B). 何(なん)で, 何(なに), どちら, 誰(だれ), どの, and similar words often appear as the 'who', 'where', or 'which' words in these sentences.

As ～かというと will come before some sort of explanation, から will also regularly be used at the end of the sentence as 'because', emphasizing the speaker's reasoning.

Caution

Like other grammar points that utilize the 'if' nuance of と, ば, and sometimes even たら may be used. However, たら will appear far less frequently than と or ば.

  • 何(なん)でこんな事(こと)になったかといえば、私(わたし)がきちんと確認(かくにん)をしなかったからです。
    If I were to say why something like this happened, well, it is because I did not check properly.
  • 誰(だれ)が一番(いちばん)上手(じょうず)かといったらB組(ぐみ)のタカハシさんです。
    If I were to say who was the best, it would be Takahashi-san from class B.

Examples

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    一方(いっぽう)、自分(じぶん)にとってどちらかというと丈夫(じょうぶ)な車(くるま)のほうが優(すぐ)れていると思(おも)う。

    On the other hand, if you ask me, I think that sturdy cars are superior.

    イオさん：「どっちのほうがいいの？」
    ツミキさん：「どどどっちかっていうと、こっちのほう...」

    Io: 'Which do you like more?'
    Tsumiki: 'If, if, if I were to say, I like this more...'

    イチカさん：「ミクちゃんは好(す)きな人(ひと)がいるみたいに見(み)えるよ。」
    イツキさん：「誰(だれ)が好(す)きかっていうときっとフウタロウくんでしょう。」

    Ichika: 'It looks like Miku has a crush on someone.'
    Itsuki: 'If I were to say on who, then it would be Futaro.'

    ヨツバさん：「その犬(いぬ)はどのくらい大(おお)きいの？」
    フウカさん：「どのくらい大(おお)きいかというと....えーと....こんなに大(おお)きいくらいでしょう。」

    Yotsuba: 'How big was that dog?'
    Fuuka: 'If you ask me how big, hmmm, I think about this big?'

    何(なん)でこんなことになったかというと、すべてが始(はじ)まったのは一(いっ)週間(しゅうかん)ほど前(まえ)に学校(がっこう)から帰(かえ)っていた時(とき)...

    If I were to say why it turned out like this, well, it all started around 1 week ago when I was coming back from school...

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～かというと ② – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (8 in total)

  • EdBunpro

    EdBunpro

    Do you remember what the sentence in question was? Will help to hone in on what could potentially be the problem.

  • Bellonz

    Bellonz

    ニノさん：用事があるわけではないけど、どちら(かっていうと) 家でゆっくりしたい。

    I’m guessing maybe it’s just that it is the casual って for と、but it seemed strange that it just marks it wrong instead of asking for a more casual link?

  • Fuga

    Fuga

    Hey there! It seems like というと has been added to the list of accepted answers! Thank you for letting us know about this error and we apologize for the inconvenience!

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