一応: Usage and meaning


I've never really fully grasped the meaning of `[一]{いち}[応]{おう}` since it seems
to have no good English equivalent. What is the meaning, usage, and nuances of
`一応`?




A word that might help you to understand 一応 is **tentative** , in both senses:

  1. temporary, subject to change (tentative name, tentative plan)
  2. done while unsure (tentative step, tentative statement)

I'll post the Japanese example sentences from
[ニューセンチュリー和英辞典](http://dic.yahoo.co.jp/dsearch?enc=UTF-8&p=%E4%B8%80%E5%BF%9C&dtype=3&dname=2ss&stype=0)
and relate them to that word.

> `...と結論を下しても一応さしつかえはないだろう`  
>  (Even if we conclude X, it shouldn't give us problems, tentatively
> speaking.)
>
> `一応そこへ行ってみよう`  
>  (Let's just tentatively go there and see what happens, though we might not
> find what we want.)
>
> `一応その書類に目を通しておこう`  
>  (I'll tentatively give those documents a look over and see if I find any
> errors, though I'm not entirely sure it's necessary.) or  
>  (I'll give those documents a look over, tentatively/temporarily, at least
> until I find something else to do.)
>
> `一応この本で間に合う`  
>  (This book will do, tentatively/temporarily, at least until I get a better
> book.)
>
> `私たちは一応合意に達した`  
>  (We reached an agreement, tentatively, although I'm not certain we agree on
> everything or that we will continue to see eye-to-eye.)
>
> `君の言うことは一応もっともだ`  
>  (Your argument holds water, tentatively, although I'm not certain you've
> entirely turned me around to your point of view yet.)

I don't intend to suggest that "tentative" is a natural translation for all
circumstances. This is just to help you get an idea. There are many ways of
actually translating it -- for instance, in my second sentence, I used "just",
and that word would probably have sufficed on its own.

Other possible translations depending on the context include "for the time
being", "some kind of a", "seems to be", and other words that indicate
uncertainty or temporariness.




A word that might help you to understand 一応 is **tentative** , in both senses:

  1. temporary, subject to change (tentative name, tentative plan)
  2. done while unsure (tentative step, tentative statement)

I'll post the Japanese example sentences from
[ニューセンチュリー和英辞典](http://dic.yahoo.co.jp/dsearch?enc=UTF-8&p=%E4%B8%80%E5%BF%9C&dtype=3&dname=2ss&stype=0)
and relate them to that word.

> `...と結論を下しても一応さしつかえはないだろう`  
>  (Even if we conclude X, it shouldn't give us problems, tentatively
> speaking.)
>
> `一応そこへ行ってみよう`  
>  (Let's just tentatively go there and see what happens, though we might not
> find what we want.)
>
> `一応その書類に目を通しておこう`  
>  (I'll tentatively give those documents a look over and see if I find any
> errors, though I'm not entirely sure it's necessary.) or  
>  (I'll give those documents a look over, tentatively/temporarily, at least
> until I find something else to do.)
>
> `一応この本で間に合う`  
>  (This book will do, tentatively/temporarily, at least until I get a better
> book.)
>
> `私たちは一応合意に達した`  
>  (We reached an agreement, tentatively, although I'm not certain we agree on
> everything or that we will continue to see eye-to-eye.)
>
> `君の言うことは一応もっともだ`  
>  (Your argument holds water, tentatively, although I'm not certain you've
> entirely turned me around to your point of view yet.)

I don't intend to suggest that "tentative" is a natural translation for all
circumstances. This is just to help you get an idea. There are many ways of
actually translating it -- for instance, in my second sentence, I used "just",
and that word would probably have sufficed on its own.

Other possible translations depending on the context include "for the time
being", "some kind of a", "seems to be", and other words that indicate
uncertainty or temporariness.

