Grammar Info

N3 Lesson 6: 3/24

つまりIn short, To sum up, In other words

Structure

Phrase (A)。つまり + (Summary) Phrase (B)

Details

  • Register

    Standard

  • Rare Kanji

    詰まり

About つまり

つまり (or ()まり) is a word in Japanese that is often used as an adverb. It takes a previous statement (said either by the speaker or by someone else) and summarizes it. This translates as 'in short', 'in other words', and similar expressions in English.

Fun Fact

つまり comes from verb ()まる meaning to become 'packed', or 'condensed'. This means that the literal translation is of つまり is quite similar to its English interpretation.

Examples

--:--

    明日(あした)何時(なんじ)でも()いんだって。()まり夜遅(よるおそ)くなっても()いらしい。

    They said anytime tomorrow is good. To sum up, it seems that even late at night is ok.

    (かれ)はいつも約束(やくそく)(やぶ)る。()まり(わたし)のこと()きじゃないよね。

    He's always breaking his promises to me. In other words it seems that he isn't fond of me, right?

    この(くるま)電気(でんき)自動車(じどうしゃ)です。()まり、ガソリンが()らないです。

    This is an electric car. In other words it doesn't need gasoline.

    ()まりそれはどういうことですか?もっと簡単(かんたん)説明(せつめい)してください。

    To sum up, what do you mean? Please explain it in a more simple manner.

    (いま)失業(しつぎょう)しています。()まり、あまりお(かね)がないということです。

    He is unemployed now. In other words he doesn't have very much money.

  • Get more example sentences!

    Premium users get access to 12 example sentences on all Grammar Points.

Self-Study Sentences

Study your own way!

Add sentences and study them alongside Bunpro sentences.

つまり – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (4 in total)

  • mrnoone

    mrnoone

    English:
    in other words・in short
    to sum up

    Structure:
    Phrase1 + つまり + Phrase2

    Explanation:
    [summarizing・rephrasing]

    View on Bunpro

  • Ambo100

    Ambo100

    Perhaps an easy way to remember this, would be to use this phonetic mnemonic:

    ツマリ - つまり
    サマリ - summary

  • entropyofchaos

    entropyofchaos

    I am not sure if its just me, but in this sentence the male voice sounds like he’s dropping the り sound in the word あまり or maybe saying あまよ. Is it just me, or an anyone else actually hear this?

    いま失業しつぎょうしています。まり、あまりおかねがないということです。

    I understand that sometimes native speakers will change sounds slightly. So I am just trying to confirm if its just me, or it actually isn’t said clearly.

  • Pablunpro

    Pablunpro

    Hi!

    The male voice does in fact say あまり. The fact that this is directly followed by 金 might be the reason that you hear it as a あまよ (あまりょ would be more approximate).

    Try listening to this sentence at a slower speed using the gear at the top of the examples section!

    HTH!

  • casual

    casual

    All I hear is あまぃ, no r sound, or at least no japanese r sound. It’s especially obvious if you compare both recordings side by side. One could hypothesize about mic issues or any other possible causes for the wrong sound, but I don’t see how it can be interpreted as り or りょ.

Got questions about つまり? Join us to discuss, ask, and learn together!

Join the Discussion