Comparative analysis of the use of conditional forms in Japanese

Abstract

The aim of the article is to comparatively analyze and systematize the rules of using grammatical forms of Japanese language, marking sentences with conditional conjunction: the non-inclusive predicate forms of -BA and -TARA, conjunctions TO and NARA. Seven types of conditional meaning distinguished on semantic grounds serve as analysis tools: simple general, concrete hypothetical, multiple realized, alternative, perfective realized, perfective hypothetical and occasional condition. The result of the analysis is presented in the form of a table showing the possibilities of using four grammatical forms to express seven types of conditional meaning. Out of twenty-eight positions, twenty-one are substituted. In the substituted positions five “strong” variants of conditional meaning are distinguished, having their own grammaticalization and high frequency of use, and five “weak” meanings, opposed to them by the same features.