I've been wondering about the difference between verb stem (e.g. 話) vs. の
(e.g. 話すの) nominalizations.

From what I gather, they refer to different things. It seems the verb stems
refer to the objects involved in the doing (like those used in を). For
example, life in relation to living (暮らし in relation to 暮らす) and speech in
relation to speaking (話 vs. 話す).

While の refers to the act itself (described by the verb). So, for example, (as
I have a sore throat), 話すのは難しい。(i.e. the act of speaking is difficult). Am I
right about this?
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2018-07-06T06:29:53.357
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2023-06-14T19:07:30.900
2022-01-20T17:47:31.443
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question
word-choice nominalization renyōkei
Verb Stem vs. の Nominalizations
**So in the case of 話す：**

話すの nominalizes the verb - it means "talking" as in "talking is hard".

> 人前で話すのは怖いよ。  
>  Speaking in front of people is hard.

話 never was a verb, it was always a noun that means "a talk/speech など"

> 警官は犯罪者の話を聞いた。  
>  The policeman listened to the criminal's story/speech (話).

**To use the other verb you suggested, 暮らす**

暮らすの would mean "living" as "(The thing of) living somewhere..."

> アパートで暮らすのは意外と楽なんですよ。  
>  Surprisingly, living in an apartment has been great.

Where as 暮らし would mean "life (somewhere)", a very frequently used word is
一人暮らし｛ひとりぐらし｝ which is a noun meaning "life living by one's self".

> 大学に行ったとき、アパートを借りて、一人暮らしを始めた。  
>  When I went to college, I rented an apartment and started life on my own.

Remember not all "verb stems" are independent nouns. For example 食べ is not a
noun.
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2018-07-06T23:35:04.873
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2019-03-10T08:27:24.647
2019-03-10T08:27:24.647
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answer