ま(っ) - Grammar Discussion

Grammar Points
#1

Completely
exactly
right

Structure

  • 真(っ) + いAdj[stem] or Noun

Prefix used to emphasize notable level of something. Literally “real/genuine/true”.
If 真 precedes word starting with a ま/な groups syllable(ま group: ま、み、む、め、もetc) it becomes 真ん: 真ん中、真ん前、真ん丸/真ん円.
If it precedes words starting with か/さ/しゃ groups syllable, it becomes: 真っ: 真っ黄（まっき in 真っ黄色）,真っ白、真っ先, 真っ正直.
If it precedes words starting with は group syllable it becomes 真っ and syllable becomes ぱ group syllable: 真っ平,真っ裸

Exceptions: 青(あおい) - まっ青(さお)、赤(あかい)- まっ赤(か)

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#2

When I reveal the grammar point during reviews, it looks like this:
ma

Personally find this really hard to parse! It’s fine on the grammar point page, with the clickable kanji for furigana, but I’ve found myself staring at this trying to decode it…
Could it be improved? At least changed to reflect the grammar point page?
Like so:
ma2

4 Likes
#3

@meadowdrone Thank you for drawing this to our attention! I have updated the furigana for this grammar point to make it easier to parse. Cheers!

3 Likes
#4

That was fast! I was doing my reviews again when this came back up and just noticed it had changed. Very much appreciated :slight_smile:

3 Likes
#5

I was wondering - both exceptions start with a vowel. What the rule for other adjectives starting with vowels? Or are they all different?

1 Like
#6

Hey, long time no see on forums :blush:

Other than the mentioned exceptions (notice that 真っ青 and 真っ赤 are color words), the rest is rather regular.

真新しい - またらしい
真一文字 - まいちもじ

Just remember that not all adjectives are used with 真, though it should be always understandable.

I hope it helps,
Cheers

2 Likes
#7

Yeah, I’m more of a lurker… I mean everything is really clear!

Ah - I didn’t do all the reading I can see. Just adding ま to the start of adjectives beginning with vowels is clear. I hadn’t picked up that you shouldn’t use it with all adjectives. I will go back to the suggested reading again

3 Likes
#8

That is super cool, we are really glad :heart_eyes:

The best way is to use the ones you have heard/seen/read.

But still, it should be understandable, even if the word is not really used. :+1:

Cheers!

2 Likes
#9

I thought I understood this point, but I am very confused as to why in the example with 二つ the reading changes to ぷたつ。I hope it’s okay to bump this topic.

#10

It’s because of this:

The は row is は, ひ, ふ, へ, ほ.

1 Like
#11

OH, I feel foolish. Thank you greatly.

1 Like
#12

道が雪で真っ白になた

Shouldn’t it be なった? (No, couldn’t send a bug report, because I already sent one for the same grammar point ^^)

#13

There’s a subtle yet important grammatical nuance that often leads to confusion, particularly when paired with なる:

  • 真っ黒になる
  • 真っ黒くなる.

At first glance the second seems reasonable, but why it is incorrect isn’t immediately obvious. The key lies in understanding how this emphasizer interacts not with い形容詞 (i-adjectives) but with 名詞 (nouns).

To illustrate, consider the words 赤 (red, a noun) and 赤い (red, an adjective) in Japanese. They are distinct entities. Following this logic, when we use 真っ (utterly/completely) as a modifier, it aligns with the noun form. Therefore, the correct structure is 真っ + 名詞, which leads to the use of になる, as in the pattern 名詞 + になる.

So, in the case of 真っ黒 (pitch black), which is a noun phrase, the grammatically correct expression is 真っ黒になる, not 真っ黒くなる.

#14

Why is this considered a grammar point? With how many exceptions and weird changes like まっさお 真っ青 you might just as well learn those as separate vocabulary words…