Grammar Info

N1 Lesson 7: 17/17

わ〜わでAnd...so, And...because, Since

Structure

(A) (1)+ + (B) (1) +

(1) Verb[る][い]Adjective[な]Adjective + 、Noun +

Details

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About わ〜わ(で)

As mentioned in the grammar point, わ is an adverbial particle that is commonly used in cases of stress of emphasis in Japanese. When used after either verbs, い-Adjectives, な-Adjectives, or nouns in their standard forms, it generally implies that (A) and (B) are negative factors that have lead to (C), where (C) is either a negative outcome, or a negative opinion. It will often be translated simply as 'with (A) and (B), (C)'.

To use this structure, simply place わ after a word, and then repeat the same after a second (different) word. In the case of な-Adjective or nouns, だわ will be used. The case-marking particle で will then follow the second わ, indicating 'with', or 'as a consequence of'.

わ~わで, like , primarily emphasizes the speaker's surprise in regard to the words that appear before it. However, unlike , where the same verb will be repeated in order to highlight an excessive extent, わ~わで simply indicates surprise in terms of irritation or frustration. This structure is predominantly used by men, but it may also sometimes be used by women. However, there are several different variations of わ depending on where they appear in sentences, each of which have gender usage tendencies that will need to be learned.

In essence, is used in the same way as し~し, where the words that they are being attached to are just being listed as reasons. Additionally, the で may occasionally be omitted.

Fun Fact

わ is simply an emphatic version of the usual は adverbial particle, and originates from は being changed to わ. Due to this, the literal meaning can be thought of as a stronger version of the standard 'as for (A)' meaning of は.

Caution

While this grammar pattern is used almost exclusively with a negative nuance, it may, in rare cases, have a positive nuance.

  • 今年(ことし)(たから)くじには()たる長年(ながねん)()()っていた彼氏(かれし)にプロポーズされるわで(しあわ)せなことが沢山(たくさん)あってとても(うれ)しい。
    I am very happy this year because I won the lottery and my boyfriend of many years is going to propose to me. (Positive meaning)

Examples

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    今朝(けさ)通勤時(つうきんじ)は、(きゅう)(あめ)()てくる(かさ)(こわ)れる大変(たいへん)だった。」

    'I had a hard time getting to work this morning because it suddenly started raining and my umbrella broke.'

    今日(きょう)タンス小指(こゆび)ぶつけ(みち)つまず、ついてなかった。」

    'I was not lucky today because I hit my little finger on the dresser and tripped on the street.'

    (あさ)から(いぬ)()えられる(とり)ウンチ(あたま)()てくる…(最低(さいてい)(いち)(にち)だったわ)。」

    'The dogs barked at me in the morning and the bird pooped on my head, so... (it was a horrible day.)'

    あのレストラン、料理(りょうり)(むし)(はい)てる、クレームいったら()れられる最低(さいてい)だった。」

    'Speaking of that restaurant, it was the worst since they had bugs in the food, and when I complained about it, I was ignored.'

    (かあ)さんに(おこ)られる先生(せんせい)にも(おこ)られる気分(きぶん)(わる)い。

    Being gotten angry at by my mother and my teacher one after the other, I feel terrible.

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        わ〜わ(で) – Grammar Discussion

        Most Recent Replies (1 in total)

        • djcostcosamples

          djcostcosamples

          Is this the same kind of わ that we see as a sentence-ending particle (w/ falling intonation, the neutral/masc. version)?

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