Japanese Brackets: A Guide to Brackets and Parentheses in Japanese386

[角括弧] Square Brackets

Square brackets are used in Japanese to enclose supplementary or explanatory information, such as a translation or a phonetic reading. They can also be used to indicate a range of characters or to enclose a substring that is being modified by a regular expression.

For example, the following sentence uses square brackets to enclose the phonetic reading of the word "ありがとう" (thank you):

ありがとうございました [arigatō gozaimashita].

Additionally, the following sentence uses square brackets to enclose a range of characters:

この文章は [10, 20] 文字です。

[丸括弧] Curved Brackets

Curved brackets are used in Japanese to enclose non-essential information, such as a parenthetical remark or an aside. They can also be used to enclose a list of items or to group related expressions.

For example, the following sentence uses curved brackets to enclose a parenthetical remark:

この本は面白い（私はそう思う）。

Additionally, the following sentence uses curved brackets to enclose a list of items:

私は（リンゴ、バナナ、オレンジ）を食べるのが好きです。

In some cases, curved brackets can be used in place of square brackets to enclose supplementary or explanatory information.

[大括弧] Curly Brackets

Curly brackets are used in Japanese to enclose a set of characters or to indicate a sequence of operations. They can also be used to enclose a group of related expressions that are treated as a single unit.

For example, the following sentence uses curly brackets to enclose a set of characters:

{a, b, c, d, e}

Additionally, the following sentence uses curly brackets to enclose a sequence of operations:

{x + y} / {z - w}

Curly brackets can also be used to enclose a group of related expressions that are treated as a single unit:

{私は本を読む} と {私は映画を見る} はどちらも趣味です。

In programming languages, curly brackets are often used to enclose blocks of code.

[括弧] All Brackets

The term "括弧" (kakko) can be used to refer to all types of brackets, including square brackets, curved brackets, and curly brackets. In general, the type of bracket that is used depends on the specific context and the intended meaning.

Conclusion

Brackets are an important part of Japanese grammar and punctuation. They can be used to enclose a variety of different types of information, including supplementary information, non-essential information, and groups of related expressions. Understanding the different types of brackets and how they are used will help you to write and read Japanese more effectively.

2025-01-26

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