Structure
一応 + Phrase
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About 一応 ②
When used as an adverb, 一応 can often carry the nuance of (A) not being perfect or ideal, but the minimum required in order to satisfy some requirement. This 'requirement' is frequently related to the time or amount of something. When used this way, 一応 may be interpreted as 'more or less, (A)', 'for the time being, (A)', or 'tentatively (A)'.
This use of 一応 is in contrast to the other common use of 一応, which can be translated as 'just in case', or 'just to be sure'. In these cases, the speaker is usually indicating that (A) is being done in order to avoid or prevent (B). However, in both of its uses, it simply indicates that (A) is the minimum amount which is fulfilling some requirement.
Synonyms
Examples
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転んだ友達1に話しかける友達2:「大丈夫?」
友達1:「一応。」
Friend2 talks to Friend1 who has fallen: 'Are you ok?'
Friend1: 'More or less.'
就職の面接、面接官:「英語ができますか?田中さん。」
田中さん:「私は日常的な英会話ぐらいなら一応できますが、ビジネスで英語を使うのは自信がありません。」
Job interview, the interviewer: 'Can you speak English, Mr. Tanaka?'
Mr. Tanaka: 'I am more or less able to do day-to-day conversations, but I don't feel confident in using English in business.'
警察官:「こんにちは、警察署から来ました。オーナーと話をしたいです。」
エリアスさん:「一応私がオーナーのエリアスです。」
Policeman: 'Hello, I have come from the police station. I would like to speak with the owner.'
Elias: 'I am Elias, more or less the owner.'
医者、患者について:「ふう…一応、容態は安定化できました。」
Doctor, about a patient: '*sighing* We were able to stabilize her condition, for the time being.'
友達1:「田中といえば、、、ちょっと驚いた。勉強嫌いなのに、漢字が思ったより書けるのね。」
友達2:「まぁ、日本人ならどんなに勉強嫌いでも漢字は書けるよね。一応は。」
Friend1: 'Speaking of Tanaka, I was a bit surprised. Even though he hates studying, he can write kanji better than I thought!'
Friend2: 'Well, no matter how much they hate studying, if they are Japanese they can write kanji. More or less.'
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How/when to use 一応
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Tobira
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一応 ② – Grammar Discussion
Most Recent Replies (3 in total)
s1212z
For some of these “more or less” translations, how interchangeable is 一応 and だいたい? I’m not seeing anything exceptional except for a few phrases but BP is marking them wrong without ‘try again’ warnings. Seems 一応 is a bit more stand alone if preferred but I do see “more or less” + 'phrase’ on both entries.
Fuga
Hey @s1212z !
We apologize for the very late reply!
How interchangeable is 一応 and だいたい? Not interchangeable at all. You could use them in place of each other, but you will be changing the nuance of the sentence greatly. 一応 has a nuance that makes the speaker seem not too confident, while だいたい does not have that nuance, and used just to state how something is ‘mostly complete’.
For example:
「もうコンピュータを直したの?」
「一応ね。時間がかかったけど。」
‘Have you repaired the computer?’
‘More or less. It took a while though.’ (It took some time, but I think I was able to fix it. At least I think it might be fixed, I am not very confident about it)「もうコンピュータを直したの?」
「だいたいね。もう少し時間<...s1212z
Thank you @Fuga for explaining and the examples, makes sense!
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