trumpet Wrote:Question about this:

"静まり返った教室の様子が収められている。"

In regards to "収める", is this sentence saying "The classroom's state of silence had been achieved?" Or is the verb saying something else? My understanding of it feels a little awkward.

Imagine pictures or films.

Hi, I had a few questions about this sentence. I appreciate any help.

そして力つきたチビは草の上にばったりたおれもう鳴き声を立てなくなっていました。

Then, his strength used up, Chibi abruptly fell on the grass and and didn't let out another cry.

Is this translation reasonable?

力つきた: I presume the verb is つきる, "to be used up." But why no "ga" after 力?

もう: Does this go with nakigoe and mean "one more/another" cry?

立てなくなっていました: why not just "tatemasen desita"? Or does "tatenaku natte imasita" add something more?

Thanks.

It's not that he isn't standing up, it's that he can't rise anymore.

EratiK Wrote:It's not that he isn't standing up, it's that he can't rise anymore.

I think that the verb 立てる is used here in the sense of "to raise a cry".

So is the answer that tatenaku natte imasita implies that he was raising a cry before but was becoming (natte imasita) not [able to] raise...(tatenaku), as opposed to simply "he didn't raise a cry"?

力つきた is a set phrase so no が. Using "ga" for the subject is fairly recent in Japanese so there are a lot of times when it's not used.

もう is not "one more" here, it means "anymore" (when used with a negative). He didn't do it anymore.

立てる here is not potential so literally it's not "unable to raise a cry", it's just that he was no longer crying.

Thanks eratiK and yudanteiteki.

As for the -ku + naru construction, I looked in my new Japanese: A Comprehensive Grammar for the -ku naru construction (when used with verbs as opposed to adjectives) and didn't find it. I looked all over but didn't see it. Then I remembered seeing it in my good old Teach Yourself Japanese. Here's what it says:

"It is possible to add -naru to the -KU form of the plain negative of verbs to make an expression that may sometimes be translated by "...has left off..." or by the use of "no longer".

Eiga o mi ni ikanaku narimasita. I have left off going to the cinema.
Asita ikenaku narimasita. I can no longer go tomorrow.

To suffix naru to a positive verb, one has to place yoo ni between them.

Sake o nomu yoo ni natta no wa kyonen no koto desu. It was last year that he started to drink sake."

Hello, I have trouble with understanding this sentence

いっぽでも　いっぷんでも
おまえを　アシどめできれば…
それでよかった！

Is this sentence means something like "preventing someone from taking one step even for a minute etc"?
I'm not sure with the combination of いっぽでも and アシどめ here

Thanks.

いっぽでも　Even for one step
いっぷんでも Even for one minute
おまえを　you(Direct object)
アシどめ make some one stay
できれば… If I can
それでよかった！That is good

RandomQuotes Wrote:いっぽでも　Even for one step
いっぷんでも Even for one minute
おまえを　you(Direct object)
アシどめ make some one stay
できれば… If I can
それでよかった！That is good

Isn't "よかった" the past tense? i.e., "was good"?

I think I've seen よかった being used in a sense of "I'm glad", "that's a relief"

so I guess it can be kind of a borderline between the past and the present because the "past" that it is referring to is so close to the present?

so I guess the "それでよかった" in this context would mean something like "just that would have been good enough" ?

john555 Wrote:

RandomQuotes Wrote:いっぽでも　Even for one step
いっぷんでも Even for one minute
おまえを　you(Direct object)
アシどめ make some one stay
できれば… If I can
それでよかった！That is good

Isn't "よかった" the past tense? i.e., "was good"?

た is a marker of completion. One of its functions is to express something that is in the past, but that's not the only way it can be used. It is sometimes also used (especially with adjectives) to indicate a state that has been arrived at or accomplished.

It is very common to use よかった to describe things that have turned out well. If someone tells you they finally found their lost keys, you can say ああ、よかった or the like.

This is also why, when you learn new information, you say 分かった -- this doesn't mean you understood in the past, it means that your understanding is now complete/"actual".

Thanks for the help!

myxoma Wrote:I think I've seen よかった being used in a sense of "I'm glad", "that's a relief"

so I guess it can be kind of a borderline between the past and the present because the "past" that it is referring to is so close to the present?

so I guess the "それでよかった" in this context would mean something like "just that would have been good enough" ?

Man, I almost translate it as "just that is good enough." until I saw this post. Forgot about the past tense. Thank you~

There is a sentence in a text of the Minna no Nihongo book that I'm having a little difficulty to understand. I extracted some context for the sentence and I really would appreciate some help with it:

キャプテンクックは船でオーストラリアへ行きました。そして、初めてこの動物を見ました。クックはオーストラリアの人にこの動物の名前を知りたいと言いました。

At this first segment, it's said that Captain Cook went to Australia by ship. After getting there, he saw an animal for the first time. Cook then said to the Australian people that he wanted to know the name of the animal.

オーストラリアの人はオーストラリアの言葉で「カンガルー（わからない）」と言いました。

In this particular sentence, I can't seem to grasp what it's actually happening. I guess the Australian people said something in the Australian language that Cook didn't understand. But why is there a わからない between brackets?

Wikipedia: A common myth about the kangaroo's English name is that "kangaroo" was a Guugu Yimithirr phrase for "I don't understand you."

Oh, I think I get it now. Hahaha, thank you!

There is a Japanese movie directed by Sabu. Its title is うさぎドロップ.
What the hell does it mean? Are there any Rabbit drop/s (certainly not droppings???) in Japanese or English?

buonaparte Wrote:There is a Japanese movie directed by Sabu. Its title is うさぎドロップ.
What the hell does it mean? Are there any Rabbit drop/s (certainly not droppings???) in Japanese or English?

Nobody seems to know.
Not even Japanese people.
At first I thought it was some kind of hostage movie in which a toy rabbit would be placed at a 'drop point' for the criminals to get their well earned cash.
But no...

yudantaiteki Wrote:

john555 Wrote:

RandomQuotes Wrote:いっぽでも　Even for one step
いっぷんでも Even for one minute
おまえを　you(Direct object)
アシどめ make some one stay
できれば… If I can
それでよかった！That is good

Isn't "よかった" the past tense? i.e., "was good"?

た is a marker of completion. One of its functions is to express something that is in the past, but that's not the only way it can be used. It is sometimes also used (especially with adjectives) to indicate a state that has been arrived at or accomplished.

It is very common to use よかった to describe things that have turned out well. If someone tells you they finally found their lost keys, you can say ああ、よかった or the like.

This is also why, when you learn new information, you say 分かった -- this doesn't mean you understood in the past, it means that your understanding is now complete/"actual".

I wonder if this use of "よかった" is akin to the use of certain verbs in Latin which are perfect in form but present in meaning e.g., "novi", the perfect of "nosco, noscere" (to get to know), means "I know", not "I knew", e.g., Novi hominem = I know the man.

Hi, could someone please tell me if my translation of this sentence is reasonably correct? Thanks a million in advance:

年中行事の生ずるのは季節のうつりゆきが農業などの上にすぐ影響するし、それが国民生活の上に現れて種々の行事が生ずるのである。

Regarding how the annual observances came about, the coming and going of the seasons had an effect on agriculture and so on, and these effects were apparent in the people’s daily life, and so various observances arose.

john555 Wrote:Hi, could someone please tell me if my translation of this sentence is reasonably correct? Thanks a million in advance:

年中行事の生ずるのは季節のうつりゆきが農業などの上にすぐ影響するし、それが国民生活の上に現れて種々の行事が生ずるのである。

Regarding how the annual observances came about, the coming and going of the seasons had an effect on agriculture and so on, and these effects were apparent in the people’s daily life, and so various observances arose.

john555, the book you're reading is very discouraging to me and made my first novel reading attempt looked like children's book .

I've still got a LOOOOOOOOONG way to go yet to reach your level and discuss the hard phrase XD.

john555 Wrote:Hi, could someone please tell me if my translation of this sentence is reasonably correct? Thanks a million in advance:

年中行事の生ずるのは季節のうつりゆきが農業などの上にすぐ影響するし、それが国民生活の上に現れて種々の行事が生ずるのである。

Regarding how the annual observances came about, the coming and going of the seasons had an effect on agriculture and so on, and these effects were apparent in the people’s daily life, and so various observances arose.

Yes, it is reasonably correct.

Nyanda Wrote:

john555 Wrote:Hi, could someone please tell me if my translation of this sentence is reasonably correct? Thanks a million in advance:

年中行事の生ずるのは季節のうつりゆきが農業などの上にすぐ影響するし、それが国民生活の上に現れて種々の行事が生ずるのである。

Regarding how the annual observances came about, the coming and going of the seasons had an effect on agriculture and so on, and these effects were apparent in the people’s daily life, and so various observances arose.

Yes, it is reasonably correct.

Thanks very much!

Here's the last sentence from my reading passage. Could someone please tell me if I'm interpreting it properly:

戦後でクラリスマスの行事などその本来の意味とは異なったものではありながら随分盛んに行われているようである。

In the postwar period it appears that events like Christmas and so on, although they differ from these original meanings, are being celebrated in a big way.

Thanks!

john555 Wrote:Here's the last sentence from my reading passage. Could someone please tell me if I'm interpreting it properly:

戦後でクラリスマスの行事などその本来の意味とは異なったものではありながら随分盛んに行われているようである。

In the postwar period it appears that events like Christmas and so on, although they differ from these original meanings, are being celebrated in a big way.

Thanks!

Yup!

Just a quick question: In Kansai people do a negative version of ておく. For example, today I heard someone say 忘れんといて as 'don't forget'. Is that in standard Japanese or just a dialect thing?