adverbial N2 uncommon politewritten
言わば — so to speak / as it were / one might say
言わば ・ いわば
Meaning
- so to speak / as it were / one might say — flags what follows as a figurative or approximate way of putting it, not a literal statement
Key sentence
彼は言わば生き字引だ。
He's a living dictionary, so to speak.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Adverb at the head of the phrase it qualifies (often before a metaphor) | 言わば + (figurative phrase, frequently 〜のようなものだ) | 言わば家族のようなものだ |
When: Written or formal speech; it precedes a metaphor or simile, signaling 'I'm putting this loosely/figuratively.' Often paired with 〜のようなものだ.
Examples
東京は言わば日本の縮図だ。
Tokyo is, so to speak, a microcosm of Japan.
彼は言わばチームの心臓のような存在だ。
He is, as it were, the very heart of the team.
Easily confused with
See 言わば in real sentences
Jengo shows 言わば 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.