Japanese suffixes that express uncertainty

[Dmitry]

Actually this topic is not totally about "uncertainty" it`s more about the suffixes that express a state where you think or feel something uncertain. Let`s check an example:

風邪気味で熱っぽいだ。 [kaze kimi de netsuppoi da] - I think I`ve caught a cold, I`m feeling feverish.

In Japanese language we can use っぽい [ppoi] suffix to say that we feel something or we think feeling something, i.e. to express some kind of uncertainty.

Also you can add this suffix to a word saying that someone behaves or looks like someone else:

あの小学生は、大人っぽい。 [ano shyoogakusei otonappoi] - That (primary school) student behave very adult-like.

っぽい can be used with nouns (N+っぽい) and verbs (Vます + っぽい):

年を取ると、忘れっぽい。 [toshi wo toru to, wasureppoi] - As you get older, you start to become forgetful.

Adj+げ, Vたい+げ (looks like):

彼は何か言いたげだった。 [karewa nanika iitagedatta] - He looked like he wanted to say something.

So, with the help of げ suffixs you are able to say that "something looks like". As you can see from the formula above, げ can be used with both with adjectives and verbs in the form of たい (which means "want something"). When an adjective ends with い than it`s necessary to use げ instead of い (さびしげ - 'lools like lonely'). When an adjective ends with な than it`s necessary to use げ instead of な (しずかげ - 'seems quiet'). It`s simple. Although maybe some of you will find an implementation of this suffix a little bit harder than in a case with the first one (っぽい). But these suffixes are equally used in modern Japanese language. So you should know them if you want to be fluent in the language.

A meaning of the last suffix has a little different meaning but I think it should be explained anyway.

N+がち, Vます+がち - incline, tend to, seems like

私は子供の頃、病気がちだった。 [watashiwa kodomonogoro, byookigachidatta] - I tended to get sick, when I was a child.

最近、彼は仕事を休みがちだ。 [saikin, karewa shigotowo yasumigachi] - Recently he has been taking (or tend to take) a lot of days off.

I believe that this info could be useful for you. As usual - leave a comment if you have any questions. Thanks.