I'm confused how to differentiate between some of the meanings of kanji. For instance, "町" can mean both "まち" and "ちょう". However, there isn't kana/kanji after "町" to differentiate between the meanings. How am I supposed to know what pronunciation is being used when reading Japanese? (I'm always unsure if I'm reading "watakushi", "watashi", or "atashi"...)

Sometimes it depend on whether the kanji is alone or not. Sometimes you just have to learn it as you go.

渋谷町 for example is ちょう because it's at the end of a compound.

この町 is まち because it appears alone.

私 is usually わたし unless otherwise noted by furigana, I think.

The more sentences and vocabulary you take in the easier it will become to known which pronunciation to use.

According to a book I'm going through 私 is normally わたくし. 　Whenever they want to use わたし they write it in kana.

The answer about readings is that they vary depending on what word the kanji appear in and what the context is, the implied politeness of a situation,and sometimes the whim of the writer. You just have to read words in context to get used to it.

I've only seen 私 being わたくし in textbooks. Every other time I've seen or heard it, it's been わたし, unless the context is clearly a formal matter where わたくし would be used anyway. Other variations, あたし etc, are what I've seen in kana.

vosmiura Wrote:According to a book I'm going through 私 is normally わたくし. 　Whenever they want to use わたし they write it in kana.

That's the standard line (especially in older material), but it isn't true in practice. Both through reading texts that include furigana and (as a more reliable source) through reading transcriptions of spoken lines and song lyrics, わたし is very, very often represented with 私. わたくし is as well, however. On the other hand, あたし and あたくし appear to be represented with kana much more often (as in, always).


As far as the main question about readings, you have to either ask someone/look it up, or hear the word said in the same context that you're reading it in. As far as meanings, this is generally clear by context.

FYI, あたし is a feminine way of saying わたし

Thanks everyone!

I'm still confused about another thing though. How can you tell the difference between kanji when it is used in names? Is furigana always used? For instance, "梢" can mean both "あずさ" and "こずえ" when used in a female name. How can you tell the difference? There are so many meanings when kanji are used in names...

Names are a different matter. Don't worry too much about them now.
The only way to learn how to read them (the canonical ones at least) is through exposure, so just pay attention to how a name is written and pronounced when you see it.

You can use a dictionary. The Kenkyuusha dictionary has separate entries for まち and ちょう. You can also look up things on chiebukuro.

Here's an entry about the difference between watashi and watakushi: http://detail.chiebukuro.yahoo.co.jp/qa/...hie_detail (watakushi is more formal/humble while watashi is more casual).

In the case of 町 (machi and cho), even Japanese people often have to wing it.

My address is (昭和町)しょうわまち but whenever I speak to anyone on the phone, they usually confirm my address and read it しょうわちょう before they are corrected. Even people in my own city make the mistake from time to time.

On this whole まち vs ちょう (町) question, this is why, when filling out forms, they ask you for the furigana of your address, too. Names of people and places are varied even within the confines of a few characters, so you learn them as you go. There's really no reason to overload yourself with all of the name possibilities until you come across them one at a time, in my opinion.

norihiro Wrote:Hello this is Nori from Japan !

I found a website where you can search for Kanji from stroke and meaning.

http://www.mykanjidesign.com

Please stop your spamming, no one is interested in your site.