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切り口

English translation: starting point, point of entry, based on, given

01:20 Oct 24, 2008
Japanese to English translations [PRO]
Bus/Financial - Business/Commerce (general)
Japanese term or phrase: 切り口
地政学・歴史・地理・経済などの切り口から国際情勢を分析・予測

Note that this is not the sentence I'm trying to translate, it's an example I found on Google. Anyway, I'm trying to figure out what 切り口 means when used this way.
casey
United States
Local time: 17:07
English translation:starting point, point of entry, based on, given
Explanation:
切り口 used in this way means to demarcate a certain threshold or starting point from which the next argument stems. So using the example sentence provided, would translate something like,

"Analyze and forecast international affairs based on (a fundamental understanding of / accounts of) geopolitical, historical, geographical and economical issues."

...something like this.

切り口 designates a basic theoretical framework or argument.
Selected response from:

Troy Fowler
United States
Local time: 14:07
Grading comment
Thanks, everyone. All of the answers are correct, of course, but this one helped out the most. In my context, "based on" worked very well and made for a natural sentence.
4 KudoZ points were awarded for this answer



Summary of answers provided
4 +4point of view (view point)
patent_pending
4 +2starting point, point of entry, based on, given
Troy Fowler
3 +3perspectives
Maki Ahn (X)
5 -1method of attack
Edward Lipsett (X)
3 +1angle
Yuki Okada
4angle
bigcat
4framework, theoretical framework, frame, viewpoint, clue, way of attack, talking point(s), concept
Keizai
Summary of reference entries provided
仕方、方法
Krzysztof Łesyk

  

Answers


2 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 5/5 peer agreement (net): -1
method of attack


Explanation:
Getting inside the problem, a way to attack it, a method of approaching it. A weak point, sometimes.

--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 13 mins (2008-10-24 01:34:08 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

Try to analyze and predict international trends through xyz

Edward Lipsett (X)
Japan
Local time: 06:07
Native speaker of: English
Notes to answerer
Asker: Thanks. How would you translate the example?


Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
disagree  Troy Fowler: IMHO, this is rather off the mark.
22 mins
  -> Your suggestion and mine seem quite similar from here... Maybe you didn't read my explanation or note?
neutral  Yumico Tanaka (X): I understand this is a helpful suggestion to Casey. It has similar point of "cutting edge angle". But as a translation "perspective" or view point" would be appropriate.
1 hr
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17 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +4
point of view (view point)


Explanation:
Comes to my mind first.

patent_pending
Local time: 06:07
Native speaker of: Native in TetumTetum
PRO pts in category: 4

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Yuki Okada: I think this conveys the meaning well.
16 mins
agree  michiko tsum (X)
29 mins
agree  bigcat
33 mins
agree  Roger Johnson: me too
2 hrs
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22 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5 peer agreement (net): +2
starting point, point of entry, based on, given


Explanation:
切り口 used in this way means to demarcate a certain threshold or starting point from which the next argument stems. So using the example sentence provided, would translate something like,

"Analyze and forecast international affairs based on (a fundamental understanding of / accounts of) geopolitical, historical, geographical and economical issues."

...something like this.

切り口 designates a basic theoretical framework or argument.

Troy Fowler
United States
Local time: 14:07
Works in field
Native speaker of: English
PRO pts in category: 56
Grading comment
Thanks, everyone. All of the answers are correct, of course, but this one helped out the most. In my context, "based on" worked very well and made for a natural sentence.

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Maki Ahn (X): I didn't see your answer when I was posting mine, but I like how you explained the term!
7 mins
  -> Thanks Makiさん。どうもどうも。
agree  michiko tsum (X): This might work, too.
26 mins
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24 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +3
perspectives


Explanation:
I would translate the example sentence as "analyze and forecast international affairs from geopolitical, historical, geographical and economic perspectives." HTH :)

Maki Ahn (X)
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish, Native in JapaneseJapanese
PRO pts in category: 8

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  Yuki Okada: I like this one the best.
8 mins
  -> Thanks, Yuki. Actually, 'angle' was another word that came to my mind ;-)
agree  michiko tsum (X)
23 mins
  -> Thanks, michiko.
agree  Yuko Kubo: I can agree to all suggestions here but for translation purposes, this sounds natural.
4 hrs
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31 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 3/5Answerer confidence 3/5 peer agreement (net): +1
angle


Explanation:
Just another suggestion. In Japanese and in this context, 角度 is almost synonymous to切り口, hence my suggestion; you tell me how it sounds in English.

Yuki Okada
Canada
Local time: 14:07
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in JapaneseJapanese
PRO pts in category: 138

Peer comments on this answer (and responses from the answerer)
agree  bigcat
18 mins
  -> Thanks.
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40 mins   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
angle


Explanation:
Angle, aspect or viewpoint.




--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 45 mins (2008-10-24 02:05:48 GMT)
--------------------------------------------------

I withdraw my answer since the same answer has already been posted
by Yuki Okada.

bigcat
Local time: 17:07
Works in field
Native speaker of: Native in JapaneseJapanese
PRO pts in category: 1
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1 day 1 hr   confidence: Answerer confidence 4/5Answerer confidence 4/5
framework, theoretical framework, frame, viewpoint, clue, way of attack, talking point(s), concept


Explanation:
the requester's text
地政学・歴史・地理・経済などの切り口から国際情勢を分析・予測
...and a gloss with assumption this is in an academic journal aritcle; and supplying the grammatically required actor subject of one/the author/ etc. -->
from the framework of geopolitics, history, geography, economics etc. [one/ I/ the author/ this paper ] analyzes and forecasts.....

Example sentence(s):
  • 地政学・歴史・地理・経済などの切り口から国際情勢を分析・予測
  • from the framework of geopolitics, history, geography, economics etc. [one/ I/ the author/ this paper ] analyzes and forecasts..

    Reference: http://www.jmrlsi.co.jp/concept/report/strategy/nv2008-04.ht...
Keizai
Japan
Local time: 06:07
Specializes in field
Native speaker of: Native in EnglishEnglish
PRO pts in category: 7
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Reference comments


1 hr
Reference: 仕方、方法

Reference information:
I think many of the proposed translations sound nice and natural, but I want to point out an interesting twist in the Japanese definitions of 切り口 that caught my attention. First, let me quote the Japanese definitions of 切り口 from two big dictionaries (emphasis mine, since BBcode seems to be disabled, I'm using the _ symbol instead):

＊大辞泉：物事を批判したり分析したりするときの、着眼や発想の_しかた_など。

＊明鏡：物事を分析するときの視点や_方法_

Other J-J dictionaries I have access to have very similar definitions.

It's interesting that every dictionary I can find explains the term as not merely the perspective, or point of view (let's call it a passive aspect), but also as the way, the method of analysis/observation (active aspect).

Now, I can't think of an English word that would encompass both the active and the passive aspect of 切り口, but I don't think getting into such detail is necessary here. I just wanted to share an observation - such interesting minutiae are one of the reasons I love my job :)

Krzysztof Łesyk
Japan
Native speaker of: Native in PolishPolish
PRO pts in category: 12
Note to reference poster
Asker: Interesting. Thanks. I checked 広辞苑, but it didn't have anything useful.

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