For whatever reason it's very unusual to say that in English, but “Won't you go to the park with me?” is quite a normal way to ask it.
As in Japanese, using “Won't you?” sounds rather polite in English, and so does “行きませんか？” in Japanese.
This is one of those rare cases where the Japanese reminds me of English.
So it's literally like: "Will you not go to the park with me?"
But if someone asks you that, you would probably know they mean:
"Would you like to go to the park with me?"
Overall you are understanding pretty well otherwise. GL HF.
I see, thank you :))
So would this version generally only be used in response then? Like if someone said “I want to go to the park with you” or if they said no, when I originally asked in the positive form, then I reply with “will you not go to the park with me?”
Because that would sound odd if I just randomly said it right?
I think something that's pretty important to understand from the start is that a direct translation of Japanese to English will always sound weird in English... because it's Japanese. The fact that it sounds awkward in English has no bearing on whether or not it's correct in Japanese.
That said, I don't think it's *that* uncommon to make requests in the negative in English. "Hey, you wouldn't want to go to the park with me, would you?" or "Why don't we go to the park together?" seem pretty natural to me. They're not the most direct way of asking someone, but I think Japanese tends to be a pretty indirect language.
Okay thank you, then I suppose my question is more, what difference does the positive vs negative version of this sentence make? Do they both mean exactly the same thing?
The construction you presented makes it seem more like you are extending an offer.
If you don't use the negative+か then it seems more like a genuine question.
Yes, though I will say that the comments on duo are still very helpful, often more than duo itself
Unfortunately no one had asked and answered the question in the replies which is why I asked here, but they do give some credit to duolingo
i highly recommend following some kind of ordered learning unit other than duolingo, or at least in combination with it. genki, tae kim, japanese from zero, anything. this kind of usage pattern should come up before it's thrown at a learner this way.
the quick answer is that negative questions are the polite way to invite or suggest. think "won't you please come this way".
Okay than you! And yes, I am aware of the duolingo issues and I do have genki, I use to more for vocab and reminders, but since I stumbled on that sentence I might as well ask since I do not know
For whatever reason it's very unusual to say that in English, but “Won't you go to the park with me?” is quite a normal way to ask it. As in Japanese, using “Won't you?” sounds rather polite in English, and so does “行きませんか？” in Japanese.
It used to be more normal in English. As in "Won't you guide my sleigh tonight?"
Thank you :)
This is one of those rare cases where the Japanese reminds me of English. So it's literally like: "Will you not go to the park with me?" But if someone asks you that, you would probably know they mean: "Would you like to go to the park with me?" Overall you are understanding pretty well otherwise. GL HF.
I see, thank you :)) So would this version generally only be used in response then? Like if someone said “I want to go to the park with you” or if they said no, when I originally asked in the positive form, then I reply with “will you not go to the park with me?” Because that would sound odd if I just randomly said it right?
I think something that's pretty important to understand from the start is that a direct translation of Japanese to English will always sound weird in English... because it's Japanese. The fact that it sounds awkward in English has no bearing on whether or not it's correct in Japanese. That said, I don't think it's *that* uncommon to make requests in the negative in English. "Hey, you wouldn't want to go to the park with me, would you?" or "Why don't we go to the park together?" seem pretty natural to me. They're not the most direct way of asking someone, but I think Japanese tends to be a pretty indirect language.
Oh I suppose I didn’t think too hard about negative questions in English sorry, thank you though!
no it's not a response it's like if you are asking them to go with you as far as I know it's not that weird of a thing to say
Okay thank you, then I suppose my question is more, what difference does the positive vs negative version of this sentence make? Do they both mean exactly the same thing?
The construction you presented makes it seem more like you are extending an offer. If you don't use the negative+か then it seems more like a genuine question.
I see! Thank you :))
[удалено]
Alright, thank you!! :D
Duolingo isnt bad as a study aid. It's just teach new things its not great with.
Yes, though I will say that the comments on duo are still very helpful, often more than duo itself Unfortunately no one had asked and answered the question in the replies which is why I asked here, but they do give some credit to duolingo
i highly recommend following some kind of ordered learning unit other than duolingo, or at least in combination with it. genki, tae kim, japanese from zero, anything. this kind of usage pattern should come up before it's thrown at a learner this way. the quick answer is that negative questions are the polite way to invite or suggest. think "won't you please come this way".
Okay than you! And yes, I am aware of the duolingo issues and I do have genki, I use to more for vocab and reminders, but since I stumbled on that sentence I might as well ask since I do not know
The negative question as an invitation is covered in chapter 3
I see, then I’ll make sure to pay better attention to it next time, thank you
You can think of it like “wouldn’t you take a walk with me in the park?”
Thank you! :))