@article{ART003315873},
author={CHIBA Sayuri},
title={Multifunctionality of the Sentence-Final Conjunctive Particle “Keredo” and Characteristics of Its Preceding Words: Based on the Japanese Daily Conversation Corpus “Casual Chat”},
journal={The Japanese Language Association of Korea},
issn={1229-7275},
year={2026},
number={87},
pages={177-197}
TY - JOUR
AU - CHIBA Sayuri
TI - Multifunctionality of the Sentence-Final Conjunctive Particle “Keredo” and Characteristics of Its Preceding Words: Based on the Japanese Daily Conversation Corpus “Casual Chat”
JO - The Japanese Language Association of Korea
PY - 2026
VL - null
IS - 87
PB - The Japanese Language Association Of Korea
SP - 177
EP - 197
SN - 1229-7275
AB - This paper presents an empirical analysis of the sentence-final conjunctive particle "Keredo," drawing data from the Japanese Daily Conversation Corpus: Casual Chat. The study carefully examined the characteristics of words preceding "Keredo," investigated variations in its usage patterns across different speaker demographics (age, gender, and occupation), and explored its various contextual functions. The analysis revealed that "Keredo" predominantly serves four distinct functions: opinion adjustment, emotional expression, information addition, and topic introduction. A particularly noteworthy finding was that within the "opinion adjustment" function, "Keredo" exhibited a high co-occurrence rate with negative forms. This strongly suggests that its primary role is to soften utterances, allowing speakers to avoid direct assertiveness. Furthermore, the study uncovered interesting trends related to speaker attributes. Young male university students, for instance, were observed to overuse negative forms when engaging in opinion adjustment, often conveying speculation or a reserved sense of confidence. In contrast, middle-aged male office workers frequently employed negative forms even in contexts of information addition, characterized by a cautious approach to presenting information. Conversely, middle-aged and older women demonstrated a lower rate of negative co-occurrence in opinion adjustment, instead showing a tendency to use positive "Keredo" when recounting personal experiences or describing events. An in-depth analysis of co-occurring parts of speech further clarified that the principal usage patterns of "Keredo" involve its combination with verbs expressing thought, existence, or communication—such as "suru" (to do), "omou" (to think), "aru" (to exist), and "iu" (to say)—as well as non-autonomous verbs indicating continuity or result, like "-teiru" (to be doing), and the negative auxiliary verb "nai" (not). Collectively, these findings compellingly suggest that "Keredo" transcends its conventional role as a mere conjunctive particle signifying contrast. Instead, it operates as a sophisticated, multifunctional device that actively reflects and facilitates diverse communicative strategies, often tailored to the speaker's specific social attributes. Its functions extend to softening speech, adeptly adjusting interpersonal relationships, and enabling a variety of modes for presenting information.
KW - ‘Keredo’ clause;Conjunctive Particles;Discourse;Corpus of Everyday Japanese Conversation
DO -
UR -
ER -
CHIBA Sayuri. (2026). Multifunctionality of the Sentence-Final Conjunctive Particle “Keredo” and Characteristics of Its Preceding Words: Based on the Japanese Daily Conversation Corpus “Casual Chat”. The Japanese Language Association of Korea, 87, 177-197.
CHIBA Sayuri. 2026, "Multifunctionality of the Sentence-Final Conjunctive Particle “Keredo” and Characteristics of Its Preceding Words: Based on the Japanese Daily Conversation Corpus “Casual Chat”", The Japanese Language Association of Korea, no.87, pp.177-197.
CHIBA Sayuri "Multifunctionality of the Sentence-Final Conjunctive Particle “Keredo” and Characteristics of Its Preceding Words: Based on the Japanese Daily Conversation Corpus “Casual Chat”" The Japanese Language Association of Korea 87 pp.177-197 (2026) : 177.
CHIBA Sayuri. Multifunctionality of the Sentence-Final Conjunctive Particle “Keredo” and Characteristics of Its Preceding Words: Based on the Japanese Daily Conversation Corpus “Casual Chat”. 2026; 87 : 177-197.
CHIBA Sayuri. "Multifunctionality of the Sentence-Final Conjunctive Particle “Keredo” and Characteristics of Its Preceding Words: Based on the Japanese Daily Conversation Corpus “Casual Chat”" The Japanese Language Association of Korea no.87(2026) : 177-197.
CHIBA Sayuri. Multifunctionality of the Sentence-Final Conjunctive Particle “Keredo” and Characteristics of Its Preceding Words: Based on the Japanese Daily Conversation Corpus “Casual Chat”. The Japanese Language Association of Korea, 87, 177-197.
CHIBA Sayuri. Multifunctionality of the Sentence-Final Conjunctive Particle “Keredo” and Characteristics of Its Preceding Words: Based on the Japanese Daily Conversation Corpus “Casual Chat”. The Japanese Language Association of Korea. 2026; 87 177-197.
CHIBA Sayuri. Multifunctionality of the Sentence-Final Conjunctive Particle “Keredo” and Characteristics of Its Preceding Words: Based on the Japanese Daily Conversation Corpus “Casual Chat”. 2026; 87 : 177-197.
CHIBA Sayuri. "Multifunctionality of the Sentence-Final Conjunctive Particle “Keredo” and Characteristics of Its Preceding Words: Based on the Japanese Daily Conversation Corpus “Casual Chat”" The Japanese Language Association of Korea no.87(2026) : 177-197.
