Lonely wallets

Differences in comprehending anthropomorphic language in Japanese and English

Bibliographic Data

ID23312573
AuthorsFranklin Chang (0000-0003-1142-1911, Kobe City University of Foreign Studies, corresponding author), Tomoko Tatsumi (0000-0001-5590-016X, University of Liverpool)
Year2026
Volume5
Publication date2026-07-30
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueFrontiers in Language Sciences (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2813-4605 • E-ISSN: 2813-4605
PublisherFrontiers Media SA (PUBLISHER • CH)
DOI10.3389/flang.2026.1845613
OpenAlexW7171822857
LanguageEN
References cited33

Japanese speakers appear to use anthropomorphic language in a way that is different from English speakers (e.g., my wallet is lonely). Some of these expressions are not conventionalized, yet seem to be spontaneously produced. To test whether these types of anthropomorphic forms are readily understood, we presented English and Japanese readers with stories where the fourth sentence was either an anthropomorphic sentence or a literal sentence. In two experiments, English speakers found the anthropomorphic sentences to be more difficult to process than the literal sentences, but there was no difference in difficulty for the Japanese readers. The results are not explained by existing comprehension or personification theories but instead suggest that culture-specific conceptual factors can change comprehension processes in English and Japanese.

Comprehension · Literal (mathematical logic) · Literal and figurative language · Literal translation · Sentence · Test (biology) · Action Observation and Synchronization · Language, Metaphor, and Cognition · Neurobiology of Language and Bilingualism