connective N2 uncommon casualpolitewritten
言ってみれば — so to speak / as it were
言ってみれば ・ いってみれば
Meaning
- so to speak / if you put it (a certain) way / as it were — introduces a tentative, figurative rephrasing of something
Key sentence
言ってみれば、彼は会社の顔だ。
If you put it a certain way, he's the face of the company.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Fixed adverbial phrase (て-form of 言う + みれば), usually sentence-initial | 言ってみれば + (figurative paraphrase) | 言ってみれば実験のようなものだ |
Examples
これは言ってみれば、大人のための絵本だ。
This is, so to speak, a picture book for adults.
この街は、言ってみれば時間が止まったような場所だ。
This town is, as it were, a place where time has stopped.
Easily confused with
See 言ってみれば in real sentences
Jengo shows 言ってみれば the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in JengoSources Compiled with reference to A Dictionary of Advanced Japanese Grammar.