Mono as a nominalizer

[rayman.the.one.and.only1_498570]

So I heard that koto can be used as a nominalizer (to turn verbs into nouns and such kind of like in English when you use -ing at the end of a verb or use 'to' behind it.) And somehow I got the impression that mono can be used to turn a noun into a verb...is this right? Or am I totally crazy/misinformed?
Alternatively how do you use mono as a nominalizer? Thanks in advance.yoroshiku! ^_~

[samsonsamoset_498257]

「もの」と若しくは「こと」can be used after the normal form of verb to convert the verb into　名詞。 however the exact differences between the two and the complete usage of the two require a whole grammar book for explaination..., for the sake of simplicity, compare the english word " attack", " this is a good attack" and "this is a good attacking", herein "good attacking" is like "攻撃するもの”　while "good attack" is more close to ”攻撃すること”


I am a 日本語の初心者, and i maybe wrong on this, ask the japanese teacher maybe he or she 答えられる。

[thegooseking]

rayman-san,

I don't think it's fruitful to think of nominalisation as like adding '-ing' to an English word. Japanese doesn't always use a noun where English does, and sometimes uses a noun where English doesn't. Plus, an '-ing' word in English can either be a noun or a participle, which confuses the matter.

With that out of the way, mono isn't a nominaliser. No is a nominaliser that may be* etymologically related to mono.

Both mono and koto mean 'thing', but they have a bit of a different sense. I tend to think of mono for being more about physical, substantial things, while koto is more about abstract things like matters or affairs.

If you see no or koto after the dictionary form of a verb, it means the verb is nominalised. Generally you use no for verbs that are 'immediate' in terms of time or location: something that's happening right now (or 'right now' relative to another clause in the sentence), something you're waiting to happen, something you stop happening, etc. You use koto for verbs that are more distant or considered in abstract - think of [verb]koto ga dekinai - you're not saying you can't do it right now; you're saying you can't do it in general.

If you see mono as a suffix to a dictionary form of a verb, it usually indicates that we're either talking about an item related to a verb, or that we're talking about a reason or cause for something. For instance, taberu mono means "something to eat" (not to be confused with tabemono which means "food", even though they have similar meanings). Or O-toshiyori wa, yukkuri yasumu mono desu. Here, mono indicates that toshiyori (being elderly) is the reason for yasumu (resting). This carries a bit of a sense of suggestion, too - being elderly is a reason you should rest, more than that it's a reason for resting.

小狼



* Etymology for native Japanese words, as opposed to words introduced from China, is always a matter of guesswork, since there are, of course, no written records from before China introduced writing to Japan.

[community.japanese]

san, san and 小狼 san,

konnichiwa.
‘No’ and ‘koto’are both nominalizers.
According to the grammar dictionary, the difference between them is personal or general.
For example,
Hon wo yomu no ga sukidesu. I (personally) like reading books.
Hon wo yomu koto ga sukidesu. (Generally speaking people) like reading books.
However, koto is also used when personal things are told….

The sentence structure of Yomu mono is a noun modifying clause.
Yomu modifies mono is the same as ‘things which you read.’

I hope it could be helpful.

Yuki 由紀
Team JapanesePod101.com

[rayman.the.one.and.only1_498570]

Minna-san, arigatou! ^_~ that makes more sense. Thank you.

[community.japanese]

　さん、
Konnichiwa.
Douitashimashite. You are welcome.

Yuki　由紀
Team JapanesePod101.com