という意味— Meaning / That means

• 「雨降り」という意味がわかりますか？

  "Amefuri" to iu imi ga wakarimasu ka?

  Do you understand the meaning of "amefuri" (rainfall)?

  という意味 = the meaning of that expression

• 「お疲れ様」は「よく頑張りました」という意味です。

  "Otsukaresama" wa "yoku ganbarimashita" to iu imi desu.

  "Otsukaresama" means "you worked hard."

  X は Y という意味 = X means Y

• 「すみません」には「ありがとう」という意味もあります。

  "Sumimasen" ni wa "arigatou" to iu imi mo arimasu.

  "Sumimasen" also has the meaning of "thank you."

  「ありがとう」という意味 = the meaning "thank you"

• ・Key Concept: という意味 is essential for language-learning contexts.
• ・Pattern: [Word] は [explanation] という意味です = [Word] means [explanation].
• ・Question: どういう意味ですか = What does it mean? (extremely useful question).

Commonly confused with

The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones という意味 is tested against.

• こと — Nominalizer (turning verbs into nouns)
• ことがある — Have experienced / Sometimes happens
• ことになる — It has been decided / It turns out
• ことにする — Decide to / Make it a rule to
• 〜方 (かた) — Way / Method of doing (how-to)
• 〜たり〜たり — Do things like… and… (representative actions)
• ということ — The Fact That / Meaning That
• ところ — About To / In the Middle / Just Finished (Timing)