一応 ② いちおう② - Grammar Discussion

more or less
for the time being
tentatively・roughly

Structure

  • 一応 + Phrase

[Used to express that something is done to some degree, roughly (opposed to completely/satisfactory) or that something is temporary]

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For some of these “more or less” translations, how interchangeable is 一応 and だいたい? I’m not seeing anything exceptional except for a few phrases but BP is marking them wrong without ‘try again’ warnings. Seems 一応 is a bit more stand alone if preferred but I do see “more or less” + 'phrase’ on both entries.

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Hey @s1212z !

We apologize for the very late reply!

How interchangeable is 一応 and だいたい? Not interchangeable at all. You could use them in place of each other, but you will be changing the nuance of the sentence greatly. 一応 has a nuance that makes the speaker seem not too confident, while だいたい does not have that nuance, and used just to state how something is ‘mostly complete’.

For example:
「もうコンピュータをしたの?」
一応ね。時間がかかったけど。」
‘Have you repaired the computer?’
More or less. It took a while though.’ (It took some time, but I think I was able to fix it. At least I think it might be fixed, I am not very confident about it)

「もうコンピュータをしたの?」
だいたいね。もう少し時間がかかりそう。」
‘Have you repaired the computer?’
More or less. It might take a little more time.’ (Yeah, it’s mostly done, but not completely. It might take a little more time)

We hope that this answers your question!

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Thank you @Fuga for explaining and the examples, makes sense! :slightly_smiling_face:

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