What does ‘iimawashi’ (言い回し) mean, and how is it different from ‘tōmawashi’ (遠回し)
The two words, ‘iimawashi’ (言い回し) and ‘tōmawashi’ (遠回し) Hello again, everybody! Do you know the two expressions ‘iimawashi’ and ‘tōmawashi’? You might just know ‘tōmawashi’, but not ‘iimawashi’, which you may have heard for the first time. Let’s look at ‘tōmawashi’ first. The meaning of ‘tōmawashi’ ‘Tōmawashi’ is used both as a noun ‘tōmawashi’ and an adjectival verb ‘tōmawashi da/na/ni’. Its meaning is ‘not saying directly but in a roundabout way, or beating about/around the bush’. Another expression, ‘motte mawatta’ (literally: going round while having something), has a similar, but stronger, meaning and means, ‘not saying directly but in an excessively roundabout way’. Examples of ‘tōmawashi’ ‘tōmawashi ni chūi suru’ (to advice/caution in a roundabout way) ‘tōmawashi ni tashinameru’ (to reprove/reprimand indirectly) The meaning of ‘īmawashi’ The word ‘iimawashi’, on the other hand, means ‘a mode/manner of expression’. Examples of ‘iimawashi’ ‘shareta iimawashi da’ (It is a witty/smart expression.) ‘tōmawashi na iimawashi wo suru’ (to speak in a roundabout manner of expression) (N.B. Both ‘tōmawash’ and ‘iimawashi’ can be used thus together!) ‘motte mawatta iimawashi wo suru na!’ (Don’t talkin such a roundabout manner of expression) (N.B. Like ② both ‘motte mawatta’ and ‘iimawashi’ can also be used thus together!) ‘ki […]