lssn2grmmr1new

deictic nouns /kore/, /sore/, /are/, and question word /dore/

A: “How much is this?”
B: “That close to you is 3, 000 yen.”

how much --> ikura（いくら）
be in be Noun in English --> desu（です）

Key 1: this, which is noun and is not determiner, in English --> kore（これ）

Key 2: Every question word always co-occurs with the question particle.

Key 3: The subject of the sentence is "this", and the complement of the copula is "how much", and not vise versa, as will be made clear if it is embedded as object as in "I do not know how much this is."

1)                                             ikura-desu [+Question]
                                                how much-is
2)    kore-wa                             ikura-desu [+Question]
        this-Topic                        how much-is
3)    kore-wa                            ikura-desu-ka.
           this-Topic                     how much-is-[+QUESTION]
    これは、いくらですか。

3,000-yen --> sanzen-yen（さんぜんえん）
be in be Noun in English --> desu（です）

Key 3: that close to you, which is noun and is not determiner, in English --> sore（それ）

N.B. The current speaker B is now pointing with the word /sore/ ‘that close to you’ at the object that the questioner A pointed at with the word /kore/ ‘this’.

1)    sore-wa                        3,000-yen-desu.
    that close to you-Topic    3,000-yen-is
    それは、３，０００えんです。

The word /sore/ is also used as the anaphoric pronoun, which refers to the entity that has just appeared before in the linguistic context. Some use of /sore/ is interpreted as meaning 'it' rather than as meaning 'that close to you'.

A: “How much is that away from me/us and you?”
B: “That away from both me/us and you is 4,000 yen.”

Key 4: that away from both me/us and you, which is noun and is not determiner, in English --> are (あれ)

N.B. There is no one word that corresponds to that, i.e., that close to you and that away from both me/us and you, in English. You need to articulate that as either that close to you or that away from both me/us and you.

1)    are-wa                                                           ikura-desu-ka.
    that away from both me/us and you-TOPIC           how much-is-[+QUESTION]
    あれ   は                                                           いくらですか。
2)    are-wa                                                           4,000-yen-desu.
    that away from both me/us and you-TOPIC          4,000-yen-is
    あれ   は                                                          ４，０００えんです。

N.B. The current speaker, i.e., the answerer, is also pointing with the word are ‘that away from both me/us and you’ at the object that the questioner, i.e., the previous speaker, pointed at with the word are ‘that away from both me/us and you’.

A: “How much is that away from me/us and you?”
B: “Which one is it (that you are talking about)?”

Key 5: which, which is noun and is not a determiner, in English --> dore (どれ)
Key 6: The subject of the sentence is "it", and the complement of the copula is "which one", and not vise versa, as will be made clear if it is embedded as object as in "I do not know which one it (= what you are talking about) is."

1)    dore-desu-ka.
    which-is-[+Question]
    どれ   です    か。