help: meaning of "iwa" vs "ganseki"

[pacalat]

i came across with the word "iwa" and "ganseki". will you pls differentiate the two. thanks

 

[ryuurui]

I don't think there is a difference. Simply 岩石 is a compound word for 岩. Technically 石 is a small rock (岩石片, i.e. piece of rock), and 岩 is a large rock. In this capacity 岩 and 岩石 is the same. 岩石 is a phrase used in scientific or academic language, and 岩 is used in everyday speech. the same as 用いる and 使う mean to use, and so does 使用. In a manual for TV you will read 使用 and in every day conversation you will use 使う. However, 用いる is closer to making use of something than using in general. Japanese language has TONS of such diversities.

 

[pacalat]

thanks for the reply.
i've read an article from an online translator that "iwa" could also mean a crag or physical disorder. could you pls. explain further. thanks

 

[ryuurui]

Crag, yes, not sure about physical disorder, especially when it comes to men lol. You need to understand that one character may have tens of meanings. 上 means, above, up, elder, top, on top of something, surface, summit, on (something), before, previous, superiority, what is more, upper, upward, upper half of the body, long ago, beginning, first, person of a higher rank, from a standpoint of, as a matter of , in the field of, abroad, first volume (of a book), and that is not all. Kanji are like women - not that straight forward. Understanding how they work takes time, but it quite fun haha

 

[Toritoribe]

"Iwa" as "physical disorder" would be ﾋ?｡ﾋ彗, as in ﾋ?｡ﾋ彗ﾅ?'. The two "iwa", "rock/crag" vs "physical disorder", are homonyms in romaji or kana, although the kanji are different.

 

[pacalat]

Crag, yes, not sure about physical disorder, especially when it comes to men lol. You need to understand that one character may have tens of meanings. 上 means, above, up, elder, top, on top of something, surface, summit, on (something), before, previous, superiority, what is more, upper, upward, upper half of the body, long ago, beginning, first, person of a higher rank, from a standpoint of, as a matter of , in the field of, abroad, first volume (of a book), and that is not all. Kanji are like women - not that straight forward. Understanding how they work takes time, but it quite fun haha

yeah, its fun.lol
so kanji both represent a literal and a deeper meaning. compared to english language, kanji seems more general in meaning?
what about the kanji for the word bamboo, does it really mean bamboo or have other meanings too?

---------- Post added at 12:23 ---------- Previous post was at 12:18 ----------

"Iwa" as "physical disorder" would be 違和, as in 違和感. The two "iwa", "rock/crag" vs "physical disorder", are homonyms in romaji or kana, although the kanji are different.

ok. so the romaji "iwa" means a lot. but if written in kanji you can be certain of its meaning.
colloquially speaking, is iwa means more of an ordinary rock or a crag?

 

[Toritoribe]

so kanji both represent a literal and a deeper meaning. compared to english language, kanji seems more general in meaning?

As for kanji in Japanese writing system, see the wiki page linked below.
Japanese writing system - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

what about the kanji for the word bamboo, does it really mean bamboo or have other meanings too?

The kanji for bamboo is 窶處, and it usuall only means "bamboo".

ok. so the romaji "iwa" means a lot. but if written in kanji you can be certain of its meaning.

As for "iwa", yes, but not all kanji are always so. For instance, 窶愿ｺ[hi] can mean "day" or "sun".

colloquially speaking, is iwa means more of an ordinary rock or a crag?

The former; ordinary rock. Crag can be translated to "iwayama" or "gake".