Kanji & Word Pronunciations?

A friend and myself have a tendency to frequently argue over Japanese language (LOL) about things she claims to be true when I disagree. Her approach to learning the language is predominantly by listening to the language and reading things, whereas I study from textbooks and such far more.

Our latest argument is over the pronunciations of kanji. She claims that Žð can be read as "osake" as well as "sake" (other pronunciations excluded in this case), however, from looking up the kanji and word, I know it to be that "osake" is not a standard pronunciation and that the "o" is just an honorific or polite marker--not an actual part of the word.

Correct or not? The same applies with "otenki" vs "tenki" and "onamae" vs "namae" as well, correct?

Thanks ^^

You're right, the kanji part itself doesn't include the polite prefix ''o'', which is indicated in hiragana when the word is written in the polite form.

Seems like kind of a silly thing to argue about, but if you enjoy arguing...

I do believe that technically, you are right. You "read" the character itself, and if the "o" is not written, you don't read it.

On the other hand, if you are using Japanese in real life--that is, the spoken language--there are lots of words where if you don't "say" the "o" in given situations, you will be considered ignorant or low class. So basically, your usage would be "wrong."

So your friend will have an easier time communicating in Japan, whereas you should arm yourself with a good phrase book (and not a dictionary) when you go over there.