Adjectival Nouns II: No-Adjectival Nouns ノ形容詞
Not all adjectival nouns are made adjectival in part due to the copula. Some utilize the particle の to mark attributes. These adjectival nouns are often referred to as “no-adjectives,” but in line with the terminology used in this curriculum, they will be referred to as “no-adjectival nouns.”
/no/ vs /na/
At first glance, many no-adjectives seem to be grammatically parallel to na-adjectival nouns. These so-called no-adjectives may be used to modify nouns, form the predicate of a sentence with the copula, or even be used adverbially by switching out の with に. It is only before nouns that they appear differently than na-adjectival nouns.
1. 厳しい修行を積み重ねて人生の本当の意味を悟った人を「ブッダ」と言います。
We call people who have built up rigid discipline and have become enlightened about the true meaning of life a “Buddha.”
2. 留学生活は本当に大変でした。(な・の → に: Adverbial)
Life while studying abroad was really tough.
3. あの噂は本当だった。
That rumor was true.
4. 車内アナウンスをする人たちは、わざと鼻にかかった独特の喋り方で音程を上げてアナウンスしているんですよ。
Train announcers purposely do the announcements with a raised pitch by speaking in a peculiarly nasal fashion.
5. 夕暮れ前の空は独特でした。
The sky before dusk was peculiar.
6. 使い方も若干独特になっています。(な・の → に: Adverbial)
How to use it is also somewhat peculiar.
7. 特別に注意を払ってください。(な・の → に: Adverbial)
Pay special attention.
8. 普通の土鍋と違って底が｛四角で・四角くて1｝、浅いのです。
Different from a regular earthenware pot, the bottom of (this one) is square and shallow.
9. 連日注射はごく普通ですよ。
Prolonged shots are quite normal.
At times, の is omitted from no-adjective phrases like in 連日注射. This is very common when the resultant phrase is four characters or longer or two morae or more.
10. 最初から左足でブレーキ、右足でアクセルと別けて普通に運転しています。(の → に: Adverbial)
I’ve been driving like normal from the beginning by putting my left foot on the break and my right foot on the accelerator.
11. あそこは一般の人が立ち入れない場所です。
That place over there can’t be entered by people at large.
12. 一般に景気が悪い時期には株式の価格が下落します。(の → に: Adverbial)
Generally when business is bad, the stock price/stock prices goes down.
13. 一流の大学に入学しました。
I enrolled into a first class university.
As seen in Ex. 8, many no-adjectival nouns also have na-adjectival noun forms. How objectively の is perceived is heavily influenced by how frequent the の form is used in comparison to the な form. If the な form is more common, then の will sound more formal/objective. If the な form is not so common, then it may have a more colloquial nuance.
14. ルフィってなかなか大人な人なのね。
Luffy is pretty mature, isn’t he?
15. 誰にでも大人の態度を取っていますか。
Do you take an [mature/adult] attitude with anyone?
16. 生の鶏肉に触れた俎板やボールなどの調理器具はそのまま他の調理に使用することはやめましょう。
Let’s stop using cookware, such as cutting boards and bowls, that have come in contact with raw poultry when preparing other dishes.
17. 世界中の新興国はそれぞれ高度｛の 〇/△・な ◎｝経済成長を目指しています。
Developing countries worldwide are each aiming for rapid economic growth.
18. 私たち関東人は、高度な食文化と舌を持っているんですよ。
We Kanto-ites possess a sophisticated cuisine and palate.
19. 特別｛の △2・な ◎｝機関を指定する必要は認めない。
(We) do not recognize the need to designate an Attached Organization.
Meaning Note: An “Attached Organization” is an organization in the Japanese government established for some specific purpose.
20. 多くのテクニックや特別な料理を習いました。
I was taught on a lot of techniques and special cuisines.
When /no/ is Ungrammatical
Despite how much interchangeability these two groups of adjectival nouns have, not all na-adjectival nouns can be used as no-adjectival nouns. In both these examples, the reason for why there is no interchangeability is because the use of の would invoke their pure noun meanings which do not work in context or syntactically.
21. 勝手｛な ○ ・ の X｝思い込みはNG！
Arbitrary assumptions are no good!
22. 専業主婦に対する優遇措置が、女性の就労意欲を削ぐ皮肉｛な ○ ・ の X｝結果を招いている。
Preferential treatment toward housewives has brought about the ironic effect of weakening female desire to work.
When /na/ is Ungrammatical
Likewise, there are some no-adjectives that can never have の be replaced by な. Attributes which の frequently creates which exemplify this lack of interchangeability include those related to quantity.
23. それぞれ｛の ○・な X｝個別｛の ○・な X｝症状が出ることがあります。
There are often individual, case-by-case symptoms.
24. 叔父の家でさっき大量｛の ○・な X｝雨 が降っていました。
There was a massive amount of rain just now at my uncle’s house.
Noun or Adjectival Noun?
As we have seen, it is sometimes hard to tell whether の is after a pure noun or is a part of an adjectival noun. The same can be said for attributive phrases in English. For instance, in the phrase “hair color,” both “hair” and “color” are recognized as nouns. Although “hair” is the attribute to “color,” their relationship is one of association and not a description of color as say “bluish” would be. Either way, の both may mark Noun X as an attribute of Noun Y and may behave as the grammatical glue for an adjectival noun to modify a noun for the same purpose.
25. 黒の服を着る。(Adjective?)
To wear black clothes.
26. 日本人の髪の色は黒ですね。 (Noun?)
Japanese hair color is black, isn’t it.
27. 鮮やかな緑色の草原が延々と広がっていた。 (Adjective?)
A vibrant, green grassland endlessly stretched out.
28. 心臓の健康の状態を管理する。 (Noun?/Adjective?)
To manage the health(y) status of one’s heart.
/no/ & /na/ Interchangeability
To summarize some of the possible, built-in nuances made between な and の, consider these points:
1. The use of な strengthens the sense of the adjectival noun being a qualifying attribute.
2. The use of な may be highly colloquial when it is not the “standard” choice.
3. Generally speaking, な is typically softer and subjective in nature whereas の can sound more objective and stiff.
4. の may be a mere connector of phrases, whereas な can embed emotion on top of functioning as a modifier.
Whenever either can be used, a semantic space for nuance play is opened up. If you are ever corrected on the use of な vs. の, the cadence and tone of what you are saying will likely be faulty rather than the choice itself being fundamentally wrong so long as no outstanding grammatical circumstance is at fault.
29. 地球上に色々の種類の哺乳類が急速に進化発展を遂げました。
Various species of mammals on Earth have undergone rapid evolutionary development.
30. この森には色々な鳥が棲んでいます。
There are various kinds of birds that live in this forest.
31. 別な意見を言う奴がいても、平気です。
I’m fine even if there’s a guy with a different opinion.
32. 別の担当者が対応しても大丈夫です。
It’s okay if a different manager handles it.
33. 対等な人間関係を構築する。
To build equal human relations.
34. 対等の立場で貿易を行う。
To conduct trade on equal footing.
35. こういう当たり前なことを言う人は必ずいるよね。
There’s always a person who says obvious things like this, huh.
36. 私たち人間は太陽の恩恵を当たり前のことだと思っています。
We humans think of the benefits of the Sun as something of the ordinary.
37. 極めて当然な判断だと思います。
I think it is an extremely obvious judgment.
38. 当然の結果が出ました。
The obvious results were made.
39. 適度｛の △・な ◎｝お酒は、「百薬の長」なのです。
That’s because a moderate amount of liquor is the chief of all medicines.
40. 適度な運動は体によいです。
Moderate exercise is good for the body.
Set Phrases
Sometimes, variation is restricted due to a phrase being a set phrase.
41. 不思議の国へようこそ。
Welcome to Wonderland.
42. 不思議｛な 〇・の X｝現象が起きた。
A mysterious phenomenon has occurred.
/no/ vs /Na/ in Subordinate Clauses
In the spoken language, at least, な is the preferred manifestation of the 連用形 of a complex adjectival predicate used as an attributive phrase before a noun.
43. 年は若いのに精神年齢が大人｛な・の・である △｝人っているじゃないですか。
You know how there are people whose mental age is that of an adult despite their (real) age being young?
In this same environment, の is also quite common, to highlight the objectiveness of the statement. If, however, an adjectival noun is far too subjective in tonality to be viewed in an objective light, の often becomes not so natural, though not necessarily ungrammatical.
44. 今週、相性が最悪｛な ◎・の？・である｝彼氏と別れました。
This week, I broke up with my boyfriend who I had the worst compatibility with.
As for the grammaticality of である in this situation, it is more natural in written language-stilted yet highly affirmative contexts but conversely ungrammatical if paired with an adjectival noun used in isolation.
45. 金色の蛙は特定の色素が抜けるアルビノという突然変異の個体｛の・である・な △｝可能性があるという。
(They say) that there is the possibility of the golden frog being a specimen with a mutation known as “albinism” in which particular pigments are missing.
Grammar Note: With 個体 being a pure noun as opposed to an adjectival noun, の・である are preferred in connecting [特定の色素が抜けるアルビノという突然変異の個体] to 可能性. However, the use of な is not entirely ungrammatical, as it can be interpreted as a colloquial rendition of である.
46. 温泉宿などで大浴場で人に身体を見られるのは嫌だというのが本当｛の ◎・な 〇・である X｝理由なのに迷子になってしまうと大変だからなどと嘘の理由を言う。
Despite hating their body being looked at by people in the large baths at hot spring lodges and such being the real reason, (they) make some false reason like it would be awful if they got lost or something.
Grammar Note: As alluded, it is not always the case that な・の mark the end of a long attribute. Here, [温泉宿などで大浴場で人に身体を見られるのは嫌だというの] is the subject of the dependent clause and is not merely a part of a larger embedded clause. More often than not, adjectival nouns are simple in nature with a rather high chance of being modified further by an adverb like in Ex. 47. It just happens to be the case that な・の appear in predicative attributes as well as aid in the formation of adjectival nouns. Conversely, である cannot replace them when used in adjectival nouns in isolation as mentioned. The use of である, in fact, would indicate that on both sides of it lies a noun.
47. ちょっと生な感じが残っている。
There’s still a somewhat uncooked/unprocessed/unpolished feel to it.
Meaning Note: The meaning of 生（なま） can be quite varied, which is why context is crucial.
48a. 大人な人
A mature person
48b. 大人の人
An adult person
48c. 大人である人
A person who is an adult
Irregular No-Adjectival Nouns?
The word 仲良し is quite peculiar. It is defined as a noun meaning “close friend(ship),” which may take the particle の to mark said characteristic. Etymologically, it is comprised of 仲, a noun meaning “relationship,” and 良し, the classical form of the adjective for “good” – よい・いい.
Although it would seem appropriate to view it as a no-adjectival noun, it fails to utilize the copula to the same extent. More specifically, 仲良しに does exist in the adverbial sense and must be interpreted as the particle に following a noun. The adverbial form 仲良く (on friendly terms) derives from the modern predicate form 仲が良い (close/intimate). When translating, it is best to never translate 仲良し as an adjective, but with 仲が良い, since it is a normal adjective, that is no problem.
49. 今日も2人は仲良しだった。
The two were pals today (as they always are).
50. 仲良しの友達がいない。
I don’t have any friends who [are close buds/I have a close relationship].
51. 仲良くしてね！
Be good friends (with me/him/her/them)!
52. 仲｛の・が｝いい夫婦なんだね。
They sure are a close/intimate couple.
53. 仲良しはどれ？
Which ones go together?
Word Note: This is the title of a child card game in which items that make a pair are matched.
54. 仲が良くなることは凄く嬉しいのに毎回仲が良くなればなるほど嫌な一面が見えてきて独り落胆するのが辛い。
Even though I am super happy when I get close (with someone), every time the more and more I get closer, a side I don’t like comes to light, and then feeling dejected, all alone, is tough.
55. 本日は、仲が良い家族の特徴と仲良し｛ø・の・な？｝家族になる秘訣を紹介します。
Today, we’ll showcase the characteristics of a close family and the secret to becoming that ‘tight-knit family.’
56. 仲良しの日を指示されることもあると思いますが、妊娠目的以外の仲良しも大切ですよね…？
I’m sure there are cases where your ‘intimacy’ days are designated, but intimacy aside from the goal of getting pregnant is also important, right…?
Word Note: Just as the case with the English word “intimate,” 仲良し and its interrelated forms way also be used to euphemistically refer to sexual activity.
Whenever the particle の creates adjectival phrases, not all of them result in adjectival nouns with full conjugating potential. When such a phrase has no conjugation power whatsoever, it is said to be a 連体詞 – a group of words which can only directly modify nouns.
Basic examples of this are この (this) and その (that), but there is a very small subset of examples which involve replacing the い in adjectives with の. This is done to add an as-a-matter-of-fact tone. Such examples must always be treated as set phrases.
57. 永の別れとなった。
It became an eternal separation.
58. 麗しの女神
An outstandingly beautiful goddess
59. 懐かしの昭和時代を語ろう！
Let’s tell the story of the fondly-remembered Showa Period!
60. あら面白の音楽や！
My, what intriguing music!
61. うたての人の言ひ事や (Classical Japanese)
What a disappointing thing for someone to say!
Word Note: うたてし is an adjective meaning “disappointing/displeasing” which did not survive into modern speech, but this example is often used to demonstrate this grammar point, having appeared in poetry throughout antiquity.
- 四角 (square) is a noun in isolation, but as an attribute placed before nouns, it has three possible forms: 四角い, 四角な, and 四角の. Differentiating between these forms is rather subjective; however, whenever adjective and adjective noun forms are both possible, the latter will always be viewed as more “objective” in nuance than the former, and among adjective noun forms–when な and の are both possible–the の form will always portray a more concrete description. ↩︎
- While not ungrammatical, 特別の has become quite dated to the point that natives younger than 40 may deem it ungrammatical. ↩︎