What is the difference between 才 and 歳 when stating how old you are? Are they… - Feed Post by lawliets
What is the difference between 才 and 歳 when stating how old you are? Are they interchangeable?
Or perhaps, is one more generally used for younger people and the other for older people?
I was taught "才" on this Japanese language learning site I use, but when I was reading an article about a Japanese band that I fancy, the singer used "歳" upon being asked how old he was, as opposed to "才".
Or perhaps, is one more generally used for younger people and the other for older people?
I was taught "才" on this Japanese language learning site I use, but when I was reading an article about a Japanese band that I fancy, the singer used "歳" upon being asked how old he was, as opposed to "才".
posted by lawliets
Comments 4
Basically is just that 才 is taught earlier in school by a few years and is easier to write on paper. 才 actually means something more like "talent, gift, ability" but has become a very common shorthand replacement for 歳. Both are understood as the exact same thing, although maybe in formal business writing the use of 才 might be looked down upon, idk though.
歳 is still the proper one to use to write your age, and on a computer both take the same amount of effort to type anyway. 才 is often still used for this on a computer though, maybe just for style reasons or because a more simple looking kanji would be easier for the people reading. ^^- Just to be more clear: It is only for stating how old you are that you can substitute the kanji 才 as shorthand for 歳. For other words you can't swap them, because those two kanji really do have different meanings to eachother.
・The kanji 歳 is used in compound words to do with years and things happening annually.
・The kanji 才 is used in compound words to do with talent and genius. 
Not commenting to give, but rather, to say, onec again, Mog rides or dies. Shout out.
Thanks so much! Your answers are always so thorough and I really do learn greatly from them! あけましておめでとうございます！
