Ways to say "about"
について is the plain "about", and the one to start with. In conversation people also say のこと, and formal language has に関して; neither changes the meaning. Three other forms say more than "about": that people are at odds over something, that it is at stake, or that stories have gathered around it.
| Form | What it says | Where |
|---|---|---|
| について, についての | About: what you talk, think, write or ask about | Anywhere, spoken or written |
| のこと | About, especially about a person | Everyday conversation |
| に関して, に関する | Concerning, regarding: the same as に | Business email, notices, reports, the news |
| をめぐって, をめぐる | Over: an issue that several sides argue or compete over | Mostly newspapers and TV news |
| に関わる | To affect: something serious is at stake | News, safety warnings, hospitals, serious talk |
| にまつわる | To do with: the stories, memories and rumors around something | Magazine features, book titles, museum labels |
Where a row has two forms, the second stands before a noun: 旅行についての質問, "a question about the trip".
について: about
Full pageについてN3
について follows a noun, and what comes next is usually talking, asking, thinking, finding out or writing: 話す, 聞く, 考える, 調べる, 書く.
I'm finding out about Japanese culture.
I am thinking about next year's plan.
については is "as for", and shops and companies say the extra-polite につきましては.
For details of the procedure, please see the website.
For changes to your reservation, please contact reception.
A notice or an email is often simply titled 営業時間の変更について, "Change to opening hours".
のこと: about, in conversation
Full pageについてN3
When people chat about someone, they say のこと more often than について.
We were just talking about Tanaka.
A particle follows のこと: here, を.
に関して・に関する: about, in formal language
Full pageに関して・
に関して means what について means, in the voice of a company, an office or a newsreader. Among friends it can sound like an announcement.
I talked with a colleague about the new working arrangements.
Plain "about", fine anywhere.
The personnel department published a report on the new working arrangements.
The same "about", said officially.
On that matter, I can't give you an answer at this time.
Check the TV or radio for the latest information on the typhoon.
Where it goes wrong
について and に関して go with a verb. To say what a book, a question or a notice is about, they become についての and に関する. English "about" stays the same, so the の is easy to forget.
Not said: これは
(This is a book about Japanese history.)
日本の歴史についての本です. In conversation plain の is usually enough: 日本の歴史の本です.
について doesn't introduce a description. When you say what something is like, that thing just takes は, or って in conversation.
Not said: 日本の
(About Japanese culture: it's interesting.)
日本の文化は面白いです. To a friend, 日本の文化って、面白いね.
をめぐって・をめぐる: over a disputed issue
Full pageをめぐって・
をめぐって is the "over" of "a fight over" and "a debate over". An issue comes before it, and a dispute usually follows: several sides argue, compete or negotiate. News writing shortens it to をめぐり.
The brothers are fighting over their father's estate.
For plain talking, thinking or finding out, について is enough.
The city held a briefing on where the new station will go.
The city simply informs people.
Two towns are at odds over where the new station will go.
Two sides, each wanting its own way.
In conversation people mostly say のことで: お金のことでけんかした, "we fought over money".
に関わる: something is at stake
Full pageに関わるN2
に関わる is a verb, and it has nothing to do with talking: one thing affects another. The noun before に is what is at stake, usually something serious: 命 (life), 安全 (safety), 信用 (reputation). Its kanji is the one in に関する, read differently.
The rail company gave an explanation about passenger safety.
Safety is what the company talked about.
Passenger safety depends on this inspection.
Safety is what the inspection affects.
Today will bring dangerous, life-threatening heat.
命に関わる: "life-threatening".
With work or an activity that someone takes part in, the same verb is "to be involved in".
She has been involved in preserving cultural properties for more than ten years.
にまつわる: the stories around something
Full pageにまつわるN1
にまつわる is for the stories, memories, rumors and troubles that go with a place, a person or a thing. It stands straight before a noun, mostly a noun for what people tell, remember or worry about: 話, 伝説, 思い出, うわさ, トラブル. In everyday speech people say 〜の話 or 〜についての話.
My grandfather often told me stories about the old bridge in our town.
Misconceptions about vaccines are still spreading online.
に関する, をめぐる or にまつわる?
All three can follow 製品の安全性, "the product's safety". Each suits the noun that comes next: data, a debate or rumors.
The company released data on the product's safety.
What the data is about, and no more.
The debate over the product's safety goes on.
People disagree, and this is their argument.
Rumors about the product's safety spread online.
What people are saying about it.
に関する would be right before 議論 and うわさ too. It says less: only what they are about.
Often confused with について
に対してN3
Who or what an attitude, a reply or an action is aimed at. Talking about a proposal is について; being for or against it is に対して.
There were opinions both for and against this proposal.
にとってN3
The person from whose point of view a judgment is made: "for me", "to me". It looks like について and means something else.
To me, this town is a second home.
"When it comes to": のこととなると, にかけては
のこととなるとN2
The one subject on which someone changes.
When it comes to money, my father suddenly turns strict.
にかけてはN2
In praise: the one field where someone stands out.
When it comes to cooking, nobody can match her.