N4 トピック
L8: Terms and Conditionals
Terms and Conditionals
In this Topic, we will learn how to use the と conditional to express inevitable facts. As we have finally collected all four Japanese conditionals (と, たら, ば, なら), we will compare their distinct nuances in the Details section. We will also learn another way to say something ‘must’ be done, using ないと.
このトピックに出てくる文法
と
If, When, Whenever, And, [Conditional]
In the same way as the case marking particleと means 'and', sometimes it is translated as 'if'. In these cases, it is considered to be far stronger than ば, なら, or たら (which express hypothetical outcomes). This is because one of the primary uses of と is highlighting a result. In these cases, と is actually a conjunction particle, and shows one of three things.
仮定の順接 - A result that is assumed to be true, and obvious.
確定の順接 - A result that is known to be true.
仮定の逆接 - The opposite of a result that is assumed to be true.
Due to this, the (B) part of a phrase using と as 'if', will always occur when (A) happens, as it is considered to be the result of (A).
と may not be used in situations where the (B) result 'might' happen. It must be definite (or close to definite).
In this particular nuance of と, despite being translated as 'if', the actual meaning is much closer to 'and', as と is expressing that (A) and (B) will always go together.
ないと
Must, Have to
As an extension of the 'if' meaning of と, attaching the auxiliary verb ない to the verb before it will express 'if (A) is not done, (B)'. (B) is most frequently いけない 'cannot go', which makes ないといけない a double negative phrase, which translates to 'must do (A)', or 'have to do (A)'.
いけない may be replaced with だめ, to make the phrase more casual, but ならない is generally not used with ないと.
Caution
As と has the 'and' nuance, it gives ないと a level of strength that is not seen in similar phrases like なければいけない, or なくてはいけない. Because of this, ないと is often used to highlight things which absolutely 'must' be done (obeying the law, adhering to customs, using common sense, etc.).
詳細
Now that we know four different ways to say ‘if’ in Japanese, let’s compare them. Although they can sometimes appear to be similar, they all have their own distinct nuances and are not easily interchangeable.
If you can keep your head…
Our first ‘if’ is the hypothetical ば. ば sets up a true hypothetical, telling us ‘if this is the case then…’. It tells us that if a certain hypothetical condition is met then a certain hypothetical result will logically follow. It is often the closest to a true ‘if’ out of all the phrases we’re looking at in this Topic.
To help understand the nuance of ば, we can force it to be translated as ‘provided that (A)’. With this, we can see the true conditional nature of ば, although note that this is not necessarily the most natural translation!
When we first learned about なら, we saw how it sets up a premise. It can even replace は for setting up the topic sometimes. It is telling is ‘If we take that to be the case’.
Next we have たら, which focuses much more on sequence and chronology, often having a heavy ‘when’ nuance. It sets up a specific scene, and also is generally the most commonly used conditional in casual conversation, since it sounds less theoretical than ば or なら. Since たら can hold a more specific ‘when’ nuance, it is also normally the safest option for use with things like requests or commands.
And, finally, we come to と, which we have just learned.
と has no doubts. It carries the nuance of a guaranteed outcome, so is used for things like cause and effect, habits, or mechanical operations. Since it handles definite things, it can help to think of it as having the nuance of ‘whenever’, in some cases.
As whatever follows と is a natural or automatic consequence, we cannot express ‘will’ after it. This just means no requests (てください), commands (なさい), or suggestions (ましょう). For those, we can use たら or なら.