If your grammar books don't have the different uses, dictionaries are often a good resource.

chochajin Wrote:#1 今日の試合は優勝がかかっているだけに大勢のファンが詰めかけ熱烈な応援をしていた。 I can't figure out what "かかっている" means in this sentence?!

Here, かかる means that this game will determine the overall champion. (the championship depends on the outcome of this game.) 懸かる too.

Quote:#2 さんさんたる太陽の下で開会式が行われた。
[...] what is the たる doing there???!!!

taru adjective.

Quote:#3 旅行をきっかけにして、木村さんと親しくなりました。
With a trip as a start, I got closer to Mr. Kimura.

used the trip as an opportunity/chance to...

Quote:#4 さすがに最高級と言われるワインだけのことはある。味も香りもすばらしい。
"だけのことはある" <- huh? I can't figure it out. If "dake" is supposed to mean "as much as ...", then I still can't figure it out.

There are other meanings. 大辞線's entry for だけ　includes:

(3)慣用的に用いられ､種々の意を表す｡[...] ［イ］ 多く｢…だけあって｣｢…だけのことはある｣｢…だけに｣の形で､素質･能力･価値が相応に発揮される意を表す｡｢横綱―あって強い｣｢苦労した―のことはある｣

So it's something like: There are/It has qualities one would expect in what is considered fine wine. -or- As you'd expect from top quality wines, ...

Quote:ほしいだけ本が買えたらどんなにいいだろう。

How great it'd be if you could buy as many books as you want

Quote:#5 植民地の人々は独立と自由の名のもとに戦った。 (na? mei?)

な　 - fought in the name of...

Quote:#6 この店のラーメンは味はともかくとして、値段は安い。 (guter geschmack oder nicht?)
私は、話すことはともかく、書くことは苦手だ。 (guter Redner oder nicht?)

(I don't have a feel for this one either, but it might something like
Whatever you may think of the flavour, this shop's ramen is cheap.
I don't know about my speaking, but I'm bad at writing. -or -Nevermind my speaking, my writing is poor.

Quote:#7 計画を変更するに際しての問題点を検討する

(wording could vary a bit with context) examine/consider/discuss ... issues/matters/problems... related to/in/arising out of/in connection with ... amending the plan/project changes/plan revisions, etc.

Quote:#8 チンさんを先生として、中国語の勉強会を開いた。
を・・・として=・・である So does this mean: Being a teacher, Mr. Chin held a Chinese study group. ???

I would have thought: [They] started a Chinese study group with Mr Chin as teacher. But I should let someone who actually knows the finer points of JLPT grammar answer.

First of all, thanks so much for your help, Thora!!!
Some things I understand now

Thora Wrote:

Quote:#2 さんさんたる太陽の下で開会式が行われた。
[...] what is the たる doing there???!!!

taru adjective.

I still don't get this one, though :/

I have encountered some more sentences that I would be grateful for any help with:

反論しがたい理屈を捏ねてきやがる…。
What is しがたい and きやがる？ I can't find any references to them anywhere.

俺もその視線を見逃すまいと一歩近づく。
Also can't find anything about the meaning of まい

委員長ともなると、同じクラスの奴の出席にまで口を出すのか？
Is this と being used as a quotation? So kind of like (adding stress):
Since you became a "class representative" it's OK to mind other students' attendence?

それに、馬鹿でもサッカーうまけりゃ進学できるんだぞって、僕、威張ってたからさ…
I assume けりゃ is some sort of slang for ければ?

後ろから駆け足に近い足音が聞こえ続けた
噂に聞く春原の妹からか
These two really bother me since I can't make sense of how に is being used. In the first one, 駆け足 is being treated as a な adjective in adverb form or something (despite being a noun)? In the second one is it an abstract location or something? I can't tell.

Honestly, に particle has been so troublesome for me. I've read about it from many sources (All About Particles, A Dictionary of Japanese Grammar, various web sites), but I still have problems with it. There are many cases where the usage doesn't seem to fit any patterns I can recognize. It's kind of frustrating sometimes =\

FooSoft Wrote:What is しがたい and きやがる？ I can't find any references to them anywhere.

しがたい 食べがたい 信じがたい　etc. means difficult to ... / un-......
hard to do / hard to eat / unbelievable

FooSoft Wrote:俺もその視線を見逃すまいと一歩近づく。
Also can't find anything about the meaning of まい

あるまい　すまい　etc. means "will probably not ..."

FooSoft Wrote:それに、馬鹿でもサッカーうまけりゃ進学できるんだぞって、僕、威張ってたからさ…
I assume けりゃ is some sort of slang for ければ?

Pretty sure that's it, yes.


Sorry, I can't help you any more. I'm still learning myself and as you know am asking tons of questions each time as well
Let's wait for the more advanced users

I'm just recently getting back into the swing of studying, so please forgive me for asking about something that is (probably) so simple.

Sentence is:
部長を除く全員が土曜日も働いた。

The translation given in the Core6000 pack is:
Everyone except the director worked on Saturday.

I understand the purpose of everything except for the particle 「も」 as it's used in here.

chochajin Wrote:First of all, thanks so much for your help, Thora!!!
Some things I understand now

Thora Wrote:

Quote:#2 さんさんたる太陽の下で開会式が行われた。
[...] what is the たる doing there???!!!

taru adjective.

I still don't get this one, though :/

Nobody reads my posts

brandon7s Wrote:I'm just recently getting back into the swing of studying, so please forgive me for asking about something that is (probably) so simple.

Sentence is:
部長を除く全員が土曜日も働いた。

The translation given in the Core6000 pack is:
Everyone except the director worked on Saturday.

I understand the purpose of everything except for the particle 「も」 as it's used in here.

The translation is probably closer to:
Everyone except the director worked on Saturday as well. も is being used to add Saturday to the implied Monday-Friday that everyone works normally.

kame3 Wrote:

chochajin Wrote:First of all, thanks so much for your help, Thora!!!
Some things I understand now

Thora Wrote:taru adjective.

I still don't get this one, though :/

Nobody reads my posts

OMG! Sorry! It's not that I didn't (want to) read your post, but I just didn't see it!!
That helps indeed!!! Thanks so so much and sorry again ；ﾞﾟ'ωﾟ'):

FooSoft Wrote:The translation is probably closer to:
Everyone except the director worked on Saturday as well. も is being used to add Saturday to the implied Monday-Friday that everyone works normally.

Ah.. that makes sense now. You're a genius.

chochajin Wrote:

kame3 Wrote:

chochajin Wrote:First of all, thanks so much for your help, Thora!!!
Some things I understand now


I still don't get this one, though :/

Nobody reads my posts

OMG! Sorry! It's not that I didn't (want to) read your post, but I just didn't see it!!
That helps indeed!!! Thanks so so much and sorry again ；ﾞﾟ'ωﾟ'):

That's ok, I was joking a bit

FooSoft Wrote:反論しがたい理屈を捏ねてきやがる…。
What is しがたい and きやがる？ I can't find any references to them anywhere.

きやがる = 来る+やがる

Quote:俺もその視線を見逃すまいと一歩近づく。
Also can't find anything about the meaning of まい

まい can also mean 'probably not', but, in this case, it means something else. Koujien explains it as 「否定の意志を表す」. Kind of like ~ないつもり. The difference between the following sentences is that the second one makes clear 見逃す was an intentional, deliberate action:

俺もその視線を見逃ず、一歩近づく。
俺もその視線を見逃すまいと一歩近づく。

Quote:委員長ともなると、同じクラスの奴の出席にまで口を出すのか？
Is this と being used as a quotation?

The key expression here is ~となると, which is very similar to ~になると. No idea where the と comes from, though.

Quote:後ろから駆け足に近い足音が聞こえ続けた
噂に聞く春原の妹からか
These two really bother me since I can't make sense of how に is being used. In the first one, 駆け足 is being treated as a な adjective in adverb form or something (despite being a noun)? In the second one is it an abstract location or something? I can't tell.

Maybe breaking them down will help make things clear?

後ろから(駆け足に近い)足音が聞こえ続けた
((噂に聞く)(春原の妹))からか

The first one is a very common expression ~に近い. The second one is the usual に, but the location 噂 is abstract, as you put it. The first one can also be seen as an abstract location; sounds [being] near 駆け足's sounds.

Quote:Honestly, に particle has been so troublesome for me. I've read about it from many sources (All About Particles, A Dictionary of Japanese Grammar, various web sites), but I still have problems with it. There are many cases where the usage doesn't seem to fit any patterns I can recognize. It's kind of frustrating sometimes =\

Most times, they are the patterns we've read about; it's just that the patterns are a bit more flexible than what we think they are. Just keep reading. You're doing great.

Thanks for the help iSoron and chochajin!

皆さん、こんにちは！
Can someone please explain the "なったりしない" part of
"しずかさんはもう大人なので、コーヒーを飲んでも背が低くなったりしないと思いますよ。"?
A Japanese friend recomended that I write "なったりしない" instead of "なりません".
What does this mean? My first assuption was "〜たり〜たりする", but it doesn't fit.

どうぞ宜しく御願いします！

After searching I couldn't find any other definition of 〜たりしない. Does this sentence imply other changes that won't happen? -Thank you

I told someone today あああ・・・ means falling (onomatopoeia) in Japanese. I then tried looking it up in EDICT and it isn't there. Am I wrong? What is onomatopoeia for falling?

jcdietz03 Wrote:I told someone today あああ・・・ means falling (onomatopoeia) in Japanese. I then tried looking it up in EDICT and it isn't there. Am I wrong? What is onomatopoeia for falling?

Might find this useful: http://www.nihongoresources.com/sfxbrows...+search%3E+

I have a couple of more questions that maybe someone can enlighten me with answers to

けど、それを単純に惚れられていると取るのは、あまりに自惚れ過ぎ…。
What's the と particle being used for here? Is it quotation used in conjunction with 取る or something?

俺は一人頷くと、腕を枕に昼食後の睡眠に入った。
Is it really 枕にして here and にして is being dropped?

杏は満足げに笑いながら言った。
I've seen げに used like this as a suffix in several sentences, however rikaichan lists it as an adverb. Does it just mean to strengthen/add emphasis to what comes before it?

その騒音を聞いて、他の男子も、何事かと窓際に集まり始めていた。
Is 何事か being used in conjunction with と here to say something like:
Something happened and this leads the students gathering at the window

藤林は顔を真っ赤にしたまま──…見ようによっては泣きそうな顔になりながら、俺を見つめている。
I' not really sure what's going on here - is the volitional supposed to imply that Fujibayashi is going to cry from the action of looking (I have no idea if what I just said made any sense).

応えたげなさいよ…と微かに睨みをきかせた視線が返ってきた。
What's up with this げ?

その話は実際と違う

Does this translate as something like: That story/conversation's stuff (the reality/truth of it) is wrong?
Is the と違う here working much like と言う？

Thanks

違う actually means "to differ"

So it's saying that the story or what's being said is different from reality.

その that
話 story
は (subj.)
実際 reality
と with
違う differs

that story differs with reality

FooSoft Wrote:俺は一人頷くと、腕を枕に昼食後の睡眠に入った。
Is it really 枕にして here and にして is being dropped?

に can be used to denote purpose, I don't think there's necessarily anything being dropped here, but I suppose に使って or にして might mean the same thing?

Quote:杏は満足げに笑いながら言った。
I've seen げに used like this as a suffix in several sentences, however rikaichan lists it as an adverb. Does it just mean to strengthen/add emphasis to what comes before it?

It means "appearing as if..."

Quote:その騒音を聞いて、他の男子も、何事かと窓際に集まり始めていた。
Is 何事か being used in conjunction with と here to say something like:
Something happened and this leads the students gathering at the window

This is like 「何事か」と思って、窓際に集まり始めていた。

Quote:応えたげなさいよ…と微かに睨みをきかせた視線が返ってきた。
What's up with this げ?

たげる is a contraction of てあげる. So this is 答えてあげなさいよ。

gyuujuice:

Quote:皆さん、こんにちは！
Can someone please explain the "なったりしない" part of
"しずかさんはもう大人なので、コーヒーを飲んでも背が低くなったりしないと思いますよ。"?
A Japanese friend recomended that I write "なったりしない" instead of "なりません".
What does this mean? My first assuption was "〜たり〜たりする", but it doesn't fit.

Why doesn't it fit? "Shizuka is an adult now, so I don't think she's going to get shorter from drinking coffee [or anything like that]." The たり here has the same feeling as "It's not like she's going to..." or the "anything like that".

Thank you yudantaiteki!

"[or anything like that]." The たり here has the same feeling as "It's not like she's going to..." or the "anything like that"."

あっ！分かりました。本当にありがとうございました！

殻つき means "with the shell on" or "shell attached", まま means "just like that", in other words, she didn't take the shell off.

心が動揺せずに居られない is just explaining the situation in which you would say いやーん.

No, it's just saying that 心が動揺せずに居られない is the type of feeling that causes someone to say the phrase. The きた isn't past tense here, it's just perfective.