すなわち 即ち - Grammar Discussion

English translation:
in other words
that is
namely

Structure:
すなわち +Phrase

[While つまり and すなわち are often translated as “in other words” they are not always interchangeable]
[つまり → more commonly used in day-to-day speech・places more emphasis on the summary/conclusion of something]
[すなわち → not common in day-to-day speech・slightly more stiff/formal than つまり・focuses more on rephrasing/putting into other words]

View on Bunpro

1 Like

Is there a difference between 言わば and すなわち?

1 Like

@mrthuvi
Hey and long time no see! :star_struck:

Very good question!
They are quite similar, but if we look from a wider perspective 言わば is used to explain something by comparison or giving example. It is an actually conditional form of classic “to say” so it literally means “If I were to say…”. You can also think about it as an analog to English “speaking figuratively”. Often some metaphors follow It is very close to 例えば.

即ち is simple rephrasing, “in other words”. It is closer to つまり and 要するに.

彼女はあたしのベストフレンドで言わば姉妹よ。
She is my best friend if I were to say we are (like) sisters.

(Explaining to a friend who Son Goku from dragon ball is, by comparing him to Superman)
ドラゴンボールの孫悟空は言わば日本のスーパーマン。
If I were to say Son Goku is like Japanese Superman.

(言わば is fairly formal expression, so those sentences are meant only as examples of usage)

I hope it helps.
Cheers!

3 Likes

I’m a bit confused what that “Caution” block is trying to tell me. It says

and then, to show the difference it gives me

When I read that I was wondering how both differ; both seem to be “correspondence”. (“Not-running car” corresponds with “decommissioned car”, “father’s brother” corresponds with “uncle”.)

I look at the examples, and the first sentence is

which is almost 1:1 the same as that sentence that is supposed to show how つまり and すなわち differ, but this time it uses すなわち instead of つまり (and has still the same translation).

1 Like