Today's post is an entry in the "Can't Be Directly Translated" series.
Have you ever translated "I almost forgot" as "hotondo wasureta"? This is actually incorrect because "hotondo wasureta" means something different.
- Oboeta kanji o hotondo wasureta: I forgot almost all of the kanji I had remembered.
- Oboeta kanji o zenbu wasureta: I forgot all pf the kanji I had remembered.
When "hotondo" used in relation to amounts or counts, if "zenbu" is 100%, then "hotondo" works out to about 80%. However "I almost forgot" isn't referring to the number of kanji forgotten, right?
"I was very close to the point of forgetting (something)."
Using "-sou" would be a appropriate to express the idea that something is (was) nearly happening. Recall these sentences that you might have seen in a textbook.
- Ame ga furisou desu: There is a chance of rain from now.
- Ame ga furisou datta: There was a chance of rain. However, it didn't rain.
"Kanojo wa taoresou datta."
What kind of situation is this referring to?
- Kousaten de nidai nokuruma ga butsukarisou datta.
- Kushami ga desou datta kedo, gaman shita.
- Kare wa umi de oboresou ni natta. (You cna use "-sou ni naru" too.)
- Taorete, shinisou datta.
Thank you so much for the lesson! 本当にありがとうございます!
返信削除Thank you very much for reading my post!
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