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I have 3 sentences, each with relative clause as follows. By considering the
English translation, is my understanding correct?

> **A** : 私が好きな女性はたばこを吸わない。
>
> **A'** : The woman who likes me does not smoke.
>
> **B** : 私は好きな女性がたばこを吸わない。
>
> **B'** : The woman I like does not smoke.
>
> **C** : 私はたばこを吸わない女性が好きだ。
>
> **C'** : I like women who don't smoke.
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2015-11-12T05:23:11.543
29178
2016-07-06T01:09:21.120
2015-11-12T15:52:37.990
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question
grammar particle-は relative-clauses
Combinatorical relative clauses
**A** can have two meanings.  
One is the meaning of **A'** , the other is of **B'**.  
Actually, I took **A** as the same meaning as **B'** when I read at first.  
  
When you say "歌{うた}が好{す}きな彼{かれ}が...", I understand that as "he who likes
songs...". However, if you say "彼が好きな歌が..." I take it as "a song or songs he
likes..."

Generally, "Xが好きなY" has different shades of meaning depending on the context.  
In this case, you probably get the right meaning easily because a song cannot
like someone.  

However, using "私が好きな女性" would embarrass you because I may like a woman, and a
woman also may like me.

To avoid misunderstanding:

>   1. To express "a woman that likes me", almost all Japanese use のこと:  
> "私 **のこと** が好きな女性"
>
>   2. To express "a woman who I like", some use の instead of が:  
> ''私 **の** 好きな女性''
>
>

By the way, sentence **B** is not natural. "私が好きな女性は" or "私の好きな女性は" is more
natural.

* * *

Furthermore, **C** also may have two meanings.

>   1. I generally prefer women who don't smoke. (This is the interpretation
> **C'** you gave, isn't this?)
>   2. I like a woman who doesn't smoke (whose name is XXX. I.e. a particular
> woman).
>

If you'd like to disambiguate them, you can say ''たばこを吸わない女性 **のほう** が好きだ''
for situation 1 above, and ''たばこを吸わない女性 **のこと** が好きだ'' for situation 2.

* * *

Summary

  * Xが好きなY -> Y that X likes, or Y that likes X. 
  * Xの好きなY -> Y that X likes. 
  * Xのことが好きなY -> Y that likes X.
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2015-11-12T08:32:01.220
29182
2016-07-06T01:09:21.120
2016-07-06T01:09:21.120
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answer
I think it is best to think 好き in terms of "being liked".

私が好きなものだ can be understood like "The thing that is liked by me" indeed nobody
would say that in English since there is the sorter and more natural "The
thing I like".

Therefore, 私がすきな女性 is "the woman/women that is/are liked by me" ( = "the
woman/women I like". By putting the theme particle は after 女性, you thematize
your sentence which means 私がすきな女性 becomes the core topic of your sentence.

> 私が好きな女性は煙草｛たばこ｝を吸わない。  
>  As for the woman/women I like, they do not smoke.

You are expressing a characteristic of the woman/women you like.

On the other hand, if you choose to put は after 私, 私 becomes the core topic,
this time everything revolves around 私.

> 私は好きな女性が煙草｛たばこ｝を吸わない。  
>  As for me, the woman/women I like do not smoke.

You are expressing a property of 私, here, clearly, 私 does not like
"woman/women who do(es) smoke".

* * *

For expressing "the woman who loves me" I think it will be difficult to
express it unambiguously with 好き only. I think that you have to use the verb
愛する which basically means "to love".  
Depending on the context, you may want to have the focus on you or on the
woman that loves you. This is done by play with active and passive voices.

> 私を愛する女性は煙草｛たばこ｝を吸わない。  
>  The woman/women who love(s) me do(es) not smoke.



> 私が愛される女性は煙草｛たばこ｝を吸わない。  
>  The woman/women by whom I am loved do not smoke.
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2015-11-12T08:32:23.563
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2015-11-13T11:50:31.463
2015-11-13T11:50:31.463
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answer