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This investigation was aimed to identify the differences between degree expressions ‘hodo’ and ‘kurai’ when connecting with demonstrative pronouns (DP.) ‘kore’, ‘sore’, ‘are’and ‘dore’. By analyzing the meaning and the construction of each phrase, the similarities, differences and distinctive characteristics of each degree expressions can be classified. Survey investigations of the possibility in interchanging the use of ‘DP.+hodo’ and ‘DP.+kurai’ were also been carried out during the research.
According to the research results of the investigation, the usage of degree levels of ‘DP.+hodo’ has more flexibility than the usage of ‘DP.+kurai’. And as a fact, ‘korehodo’ can be wider used than ‘sorehodo’ and ‘arehodo’, which ‘korehodo’ was mainly used in expressing additional positive degrees such as ‘especially high level’ or ‘highest level’, but on the other hand, ‘sorehodo’ was mainly used in the expressions of negative degrees. The expression of ‘dorehodo’ can be seen as ‘emphasizing the degree of level’ in a positive manner, and ‘dorekurai’ remained neutral in expressions of ‘questioning the degree of level’ or ‘level of quantity’.
For the interchangeabilities of the expressions, ‘korehodo’ and ‘korekurai’ can be interchangeable in situations presenting ‘highest level’ and ‘secondary level’. And when expressing degrees of ‘especially high level’, ‘sorehodo’ and ‘sorekurai’ can be interchanged, which ‘korehodo’ and ‘korekurai’ cannot. But ‘arehodo’ and ‘arekurai’ can be interchangeable when it is not expressing ‘especially high level of the past’. And when it came to the situations of expressing ‘questioning the degree of level’, ‘unknown level’ and ‘level of quantity’, ‘dorehodo’ and ‘dorekurai’ can be interchangeable. Though, in the situation of ‘~no+noun’, the interchangeability between ‘kore’ / ‘sore’ + ‘hodo’ / ‘kurai’ remained unknown. Which was the same to the expressions of ‘dorehodo’ and ‘dorekurai’, in the situation of ‘~noun’.
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