I know とても is not very formal, but what about ずいぶん and 大いに? Are ずいぶん and 大いに
interchangeable, and if so, which is more formal?
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-02-13T19:39:31.040
43486
2017-02-14T03:14:25.380
19847
question
politeness synonyms formality
Which is more formal/polite: 大いに or ずいぶん?
I don't feel that either one of them has a significantly formal (or casual)
tone. (A good rule of thumb is that 漢語 tends to be stilted and formal, while
pure-Japanese words are less so.)

One major factor that will affect the formality of those words is their
nuance:

  * ずいぶん: implies that the degree is perhaps "too much".
  * 大いに: implies that something was "wholeheartedly" so.

Here is a contrived example of what (I think) that might mean:

  * 「彼はずいぶん意気込んでるね」: "He's...really into it, isn't he?"
  * 「彼は大いに意気込んでる、ね？」: "He's really poured his heart into it, hasn't he?"

Finally, a good neutral semi-formal adjective that is less nuanced is 「非常に」.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-02-14T01:01:26.583
43494
2017-02-14T01:01:26.583
3131
43486
answer
What is formal in your mind?

Suppose the meeting room is a mess and you want to have it clean. The
following is the e-mail message from you to a person in the General Affairs
Department.

> "会議室がとても汚れています。11時までに、清掃をお願いします。" This is the best and most popular (and
> formal) expression on business.
>
> "会議室がずいぶん汚れています。・・・" This one is also OK.
>
> "会議室が大{おお}いに汚れています。・・・" This one is acceptable but "おおいに" is generally for
> the expression of an emotion. I wouldn't use it for this situation.
>
> "会議室が非常{ひじょう}に汚れています。・・・" The word "非常に" is versatile. It's used widely. I
> can recommend the use of "非常に" for any situation without using set phrases.
>
> "非常に" と言う言い方は、非常に広く使われます。

The common expressions,

> Preceding sentence: "とてもご無沙汰しております" Long time no see. (I'm not sure but
> "とても" in English here can be "very"? Very long time no see.???)

"おおいに" is rather suitable for the expression of feeling.

> "私は、その素晴らしい演奏に、大いに感動した" I was greatly moved by the performance.
CC BY-SA 3.0
2017-02-14T01:45:40.087
43497
2017-02-14T03:14:25.380
2020-06-17T08:18:27.500
-1
19219
43486
answer