Masculine/feminine speech doubts

madphysicist · 12 Oct 2016

I'm female and I'm not sure whether some expressions are too masculine for me to use or not. I thought these would be quite easy to google but not getting anywhere.

Recently someone told me I use "っけ" too much and said only "otoko from inaka" say it. I've never heard that before and in textbooks etc. it's listed as just another grammar point without a gender indication. Does it depend on the exact sentence? I think I said "いつ始まるっけ?" or something. They suggested "いつ始まるかな" but to me that doesn't seem like the same meaning.

Also I don't think I've heard women say "やる" instead of "する". Is it masculine-sounding or just casual?

And finally what about "やつ" as in "thing"? (e.g. 黄色いやつ - that yellow thing)

Mike Cash · 12 Oct 2016

madphysicist said:
Recently someone told me I use "っけ" too much and said only "otoko from inaka" say it.

Let me guess....A fellow foreigner told you that? Or a 気取った都会人?

I've been living in the inaka quite long enough to report with full confidence that plenty of "onna from inaka" say it.

やる vs する don't worry about.

やつ.... I'm a middle-aged male truck driver and I sometimes get called out for an excessive lack of 品 for using it too much. You might want to minimize your use of it.

salyavin · 12 Oct 2016

My Japanese wife uses "っけ" at least around me. I wouldn't worry about it.
I guess I must qualify my wife is an "onna from inaka" as opposed to a high class city dweller.

madphysicist · 12 Oct 2016

Mike Cash said:
Let me guess....A fellow foreigner told you that? Or a 気取った都会人?

Japanese person from Osaka.

Thanks to both of you for replying. Maybe I should have clarified I don't really care whether I sound like someone from a city or "inaka" as long as it's not comically out of place for me to keep using a particular expression.

Ah and I forgot there was one more someone else pointed out a while ago - volitional + か as in "行こうか". Is it masculine...? I have been avoiding it but perhaps needlessly.

Mike Cash · 12 Oct 2016

madphysicist said:
Ah and I forgot there was one more someone else pointed out a while ago - volitional + か as in "行こうか". Is it masculine...? I have been avoiding it but perhaps needlessly.

The very first thing that instantly popped into my mind when I read your question was the opening lyrics to 心に咲く花

Hardly an answer, is it?

I wouldn't worry about it. Both the plain and polite forms are used, according to the situation.

madphysicist · 13 Oct 2016

Mike Cash said:
I wouldn't worry about it. Both the plain and polite forms are used, according to the situation.

Thanks. I have a vague memory that it was a Japanese teacher who told me it sounded masculine in one of my very few formal lessons, which might be why I consciously stopped using it. But I could be remembering wrong.

Toritoribe · 14 Oct 2016

The nuance is different depending on the meaning/intonation. For instance, male and female both use 行こうか with the rising intonation when offering to go, but falling intonation for invitation could sound masculine. However, the gender difference is more and more decreasing nowadays, so you wouldn't need to worry too much about it, as already pointed out.

Masculine/feminine speech doubts

madphysicist

先輩

Mike Cash

骨も命も皆此の土地に埋めよう

salyavin

Sempai

madphysicist

先輩

Mike Cash

骨も命も皆此の土地に埋めよう

madphysicist

先輩

Toritoribe

松葉解禁

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