こそあど V: んな, ～いう風な, Etc.
This lesson will go over adjectival and adverbial こそあど forms which relate to likeness and degree.
こそあど for “Like/Kind of”
There are many こそあど phrases used to describe what something is like. First, let’s look at the most essential ones which utilize ～ようだ meaning “to seem like.”
| Short Form (Colloquial) | Long Form (Formal) | |
| “Like This” | こんな | このような |
| “Like That” | そんな | そのような |
| “Like That” | あんな | あのような |
| “What Sort of” | どんな | どのような |
How the そ-series and あ-series differ remains the same as with other こそあど expressions. The former relates to situations that are only truly ascertained by one side (either the speaker or the listener but not both), whereas the latter relates to situations that are ascertained by both sides (both the speaker and the listener).
1. どんな講座を受けていますか。
What kind of course are you taking?
2. そんな方法のことは一度も聞かなかった。
I never heard of a method like that.
3. 公園にはそのような小鳥がたくさんいます。
There are many such birds in the park.
4. あの人はどんなマナー違反をしていますか。
What sort of breaches of etiquette is that person committing?
5. そんな！ (Interjection)
No way!
6. 人をこんな気分にさせるなんてひどいんですよ。
Making someone feel this way is just awful.
7. こんなの初めてだ！
This sort of thing is a first for me!
These forms are must frequently seen directly in front of nouns, and just like the base こそあど that compose them, they are treated as what are known as 連体詞: adjectival phrases which lack the ability to conjugate. However, not so commonly, the short forms may also function as 形容動詞.
| 連体形 | 終止形 |
| こんなな | こんなだ |
| そんなな | そんなだ |
| あんなな | あんなだ |
| どんなな | どんなだ |
The only time that the 連体形 is used is when it is followed by the nominalizer の to form subordinate clauses, including when it does so inside the conjunctive particles ので・のに. Although the 終止形 is not so common either, these 形容動詞 renditions may be conjugated to the same extent as any other adjectival noun.
【連体形】
8. 大人でもSNSの利用状況がこんななのに、携帯などを子供に安易に使わせているのをどうしたらいいだろうか。
Despite how the way in which social media is like this even by adults, what should be done about how we’re allowing children to easily use cellphones and such?
9.１月はそんななので別に焦らなくていいかなって思います。
Since January is always like that, I feel like I shouldn’t really have to stress about it.
10. 公立か私立か、その学校のレベルがどんななのにもよると思う。
I think it also depends on what sort of level the school is at, whether it be a public or a private institution.
11. 事態があんななので、どうすることもできない。
Since the situation is like that, there is nothing that can be done about it.
12 太郎君はなぜいつもあんななのだろう。
Why is it that Taro-kun is always like that?
【終止形】
13. 占いすると大体こんなだよね。
Whenever I do fortune-telling, this is generally how it is.
14. そんなだからみんなに嫌われるんですよ？
You realize you’re hated by everyone because you’re like that, right?
15. 昔はこんなだった。
This is how it was back in the day.
16. あんなだから、きっと友達いないんだろうな。
Since (he)’s like that, he definitely doesn’t have any friends, I bet.
こそあど ＋～風｛な・の｝
風（ふう）attaches to nouns to denote tendency/likeness. In doing so, what results function as ノ-type adjectival nouns (ノ形容動詞).
17. アメリカで作られたメキシコ風の料理をテクス・メクス料理と呼びます。
We call Mexican-style cuisine made in the U.S “Tex-Mex cuisine.”
風 may even be used as a standalone noun to indicate tendency/likeness.
18. 大都市の風に馴染んでいない移住者も多いようだ。
There also appears to be many emigrants who have located themselves (here) who are not yet accustomed to the ways of the metropolis.
19. 店員の風を装って入り込んだ者がお客さんから代金を受け取って逃げ去った。
A person who had gone in feigning to be a store employee took payment from customers and got away.
In recent years, its role as a filler word has extended to こそあど expressions which indicate likeness, following both the ～んな and ［adverbial form + いう] series.
| ～んな風｛な・の｝ | ［adverbial form + いう] 風｛な・の｝ |
| こんな風｛な・の｝ | こういう風｛な・の｝ |
| そんな風｛な・の｝ | そういう風｛な・の｝ |
| あんな風｛な・の｝ | ああいう風｛な・の｝ |
| どんな風｛な・の｝ | どういう風｛な・の｝ |
Because 風 functions here as a ノ-type adjectival noun (ノ形容動詞), the 終止形 simply uses だ for all these expressions, but the 連体形 fluctuates, in practice, between な and の. Traditionally, only の is deemed to be grammatically correct, but in modern speech, な has taken over. Also, because the short forms do contain よう, which is also a noun indicating likeliness, that renders 風 as being redundant, which has led to its use after them to be deemed ungrammatical. Nowadays, though, fewer speakers feel there is anything inherently wrong with them as the short forms heavily emphasis degree with 風 reinforcing “likeness” to said degree.
As for how these series differ in nuance from the other, the ～んな風 expressions sound far more casual, whereas the ［adverbial form + いう] 風 expressions provide a more objective tone.
20. 太郎君がそんな風に怒るなんて珍しいよね。
It’s pretty rare for Taro-kun to get angry like that, huh.
21. あんな風には上手く踊れないよ。
I can’t dance well at all like how (they) are.
22. どういう風な態度をしたらいい？
What sort of attitude/stance should I take?
It is also worth noting that この・その・あの・どの may simply directly modify 風, which is more direct and concise.
[Adverbial Form] + した
| 連体形 | End of Sentence |
| こうした | こうしたものだ |
| そうした | そうしたものだ |
| ああした | ああしたもんだ |
| どうした※ | どうしたものか※ |
※This should not be confused with どうした as a standalone sentence, which would be interpreted as “what’s the matter?”
※どうしたものか may either mean “for whatever reason” or “whatever shall (I) do?”
These forms help describe entities which serve as ongoing examples of whatever analogy and/or comparison being made, which is not necessarily the case with those made with いう・いった. Between these two groups, the [adverbial form + した] often sounds a tad more formal.
23. ああしたことが起きてしまって大きな犠牲が出てしまったということは、大きな警鐘を鳴らした、大変な事件だったと思います。
How such an incident like that occurred, which resulted in so many casualties, I do believe was a serious incident which sounded the alarm (to us) big time.
24. こうした事態が起こっていることは大変遺憾に思っております。
I believe it is terribly regrettable that these sort of situations are occurring.
25. どうしたわけか電車の中で泣いていました。
For whatever reason, I was crying inside the train.
There are also times in which した ought to be treated literally as meaning “to do.”
26. こうした方がいいと思います。
I think (we) should do it like this.
[Adverbial Form] + いう・いった
| 連体形 | End of Sentence |
| こう｛いう・いった｝ | こう｛いう・いった｝ものだ |
| そう｛いう・いった｝ | そう｛いう・いった｝ものだ |
| ああ｛いう・いった｝ | ああ｛いう・いった｝ものだ |
| どう｛いう・いった｝ | どう｛いう・いった｝ものか |
When you use いった instead of いう, rather than grouping similar things together, you are describing individual instances as being related without extending the likeness to other things necessarily.
27. ああいう時計って音がやたら大きいでしょう？
Don’t clocks like that make excessively loud noise?
28 こういう事情なので本日のみ臨時休業させていただきたいと思います。
Because of these circumstances, we’d like to temporarily close just for today.
29. 背後にどういう葉っぱ（の色）がくるかが大事です。
What kind of color the leaves will go in the background is important.
30. この単語はどういう意味ですか。
What does this word mean?
31. キャンディーやアイスクリーム、こういう甘いものが好きです。
I like sweet things like candy and ice cream.
32. キャンディーやアイスクリーム、こういった甘いものが好きです。
I like sweet things of the candy and ice cream varieties.
33. こういう色の服が欲しい。
I want clothes that are like this sort of color.
34. そういう方向でいいのではないかという議論があった。
There was a debate over it’d being alright to to take that sort of direction.
35. ああいう文章は書けませんよ。
I can’t write a passage like that.
It must be noted that these basic adverbial forms こう・そう・ああ・どう – simply corresponding to “like this/that/that/how” in the sense of method – may modify the verb 言う when it is used as the predicate of the sentence. As this is not the same function いう is used for in these structures, there will never be overlap.
36. ある学生はこう言いました。
A certain student stated as such.
Adverbial Forms
There are also adverbial renditions of these こそあど phrases. The first row shows the basic adverbial forms which we have already seen used for making alternative attributive forms, characterized by elongation of the first mora.
| こう | そう | ああ | どう |
| こんなに | そんなに | あんなに | どんなに |
| このように | そのように | あのように | どのように |
| こういう風に | そういう風に | ああいう風に | どういう風に |
| こうして | そうして | ああして | どうして※ |
| こうやって | そうやって | ああやって | どうやって |
The adverbial forms made with ～んなに relate to degree, whereas the other columns indicate the manner in which something is done. In other words, the “so” in “so bad” would correspond to そんなに. The “so” in “to do like so” would correspond to そう（いう風に・して・やって）, but it must be noted that どうして typically means “why” as opposed to “in what manner/how.” As for the “so” in “to look like so,” that would be expressed with そう（いう風に）.
It must also be noted that やって is more colloquial than して but that the ～んなに forms are the most casual of them all.
37. そんなに急がないでね。
Don’t be in such a hurry.
38. そうは思いません。
I don’t think so.
39 こんなに遅いとは知らなかった。
I didn’t realize how late it was.
40. そういう風に英語を勉強します。
I study English that sort of way.
41. 映像をこうやって作ります。
You create a clip like this.
42. １０時間もああでもこうでもないと議論したけど、まだ何も決めていません。
We’ve been beating around the bush for over 10 hours, but we haven’t decided on anything yet.
43. いつ、誰が、どんな形で、どのように決めたかは本当に知らない。
I really don’t know who decided it all or when, in what form, or how (they did so).
44. どんなに失敗しても諦めてはいけません。
No matter how much you fail, you mustn’t give up.
45. お前は悪いんだと、そういう風に言いました。
(He) said, on the lines of, “you’re at fault.”
In casual speech, the に which forms the 連用形 for the んな series may be dropped.
46. そんな（に）焦んなって。
Hey, no need to be anxious like that.
いかにも
いかにも, despite being part of the defunct いか-group of demonstratives, is exceptionally used heavily in both the spoken and written languages, translating as “indeed/absolutely/truly (the case)”
47. 遅刻するのはいかにもローサらしいよ。
Being late is typical of Rosa.
48. いかにもその通りだよ。
You can say that again!
～かそこ（い）ら
An important set phrase with こそあど grammar is ～かそこいら1, which expresses approximate degree or quantity that the speaker feels is not too much.
49. 13歳かそこいらの若僧
A young person around 13 years old.
50. 歩数は千歩かそこらだ。
My number of steps is around 1000.
51. 一時間かそこら待った。
I waited for about an hour (or so, not too bad).
そんじょそこら
そんじょそこら is an emphatic version of そこいら, translating as “run-of-the-mill,” often in negative contexts in which the speaker is downplaying the degree/extent of something.
52. あの会社はそんじょそこらの人じゃ受からないよ。
No ordinary person would get through at that company.
53. 彼女はそんじょそこらの女とは違う。
She’s quite different from just the ordinary woman.
54. そんじょそこらのチョコレートでは満足しない。
I’m not satisfied with just ordinary chocolate.
- The いら part roughly translates to “around” in location pronouns such as ここいら (hereabouts) and そこいら (thereabouts). In modern speech, these two phrases are replaced with ここら辺 and そこら辺 respectively. ↩︎