i was wondering...

[Kamina]

Hi, I'm a n00b so please go easy.
Would i be right in saying the below question means "where should i buy shoes?"
"Doko de kutsu o kattara ii desu ka"
does the sentence still make sense if i remove the 'ii'?
"Doko de kutsu o kattara desu ka"
Does it make slightly different meaning? what's the difference/nuance?

thanks!

EDIT: Oh and one more minor thing that doesn't really deserve it's own thread. Can a sentence ever end with "ni"?

 

[Toritoribe]

Would i be right in saying the below question means "where should i buy shoes?"
"Doko de kutsu o kattara ii desu ka"

Yes.

does the sentence still make sense if i remove the 'ii'?
"Doko de kutsu o kattara desu ka"
Does it make slightly different meaning? what's the difference/nuance?

No. "kattara desu ka" does not make sense. If you remove "ii", you have to conjugate the verb "kau" to another form. For example,

どこで靴を買いますか？
Doko de kutsu o kaimasu ka?

どこで靴を買うのですか/買うんですか？
Doko de kutsu o kau no desu ka?/kau n desu ka?

And the meaning is quite different. The both sentences above generally mean "Where do you buy shoes?". (Depending on context, they might mean "Where do we buy shoes?")

Can a sentence ever end with "ni"?

e.g.
遠慮しないでもっと食べればいいのに。
Enryoshinaide motto tabereba ii no ni.
I wish you ate more without reserve.

hope this helps

 

[Elizabeth]

Hi, I'm a n00b so please go easy.
Would i be right in saying the below question means "where should i buy shoes?"
"Doko de kutsu o kattara ii desu ka"

Kutsu ha doko de kaeba ii desuka? is another way with more emphasis on the "shoes" as subject.

does the sentence still make sense if i remove the 'ii'?
"Doko de kutsu o kattara desu ka"
Does it make slightly different meaning? what's the difference/nuance?
thanks!

You can use as a conditional in quotative form, though, right without the "doko de" ? Like "kutsu o kattara ?" desu ne (yone...)。 It's (setting up a case) "If/When you buy shoes?" isn't it ??

 

[Toritoribe]

mornin' Elizabeth-san
Right. "Doko de kutsu o kattara?" could have the meaning as "where should i buy shoes?" in some context.
"Kutsu o kattara ?" sounds like "Why don't you buy shoes?";-)