Does this sentence translation sound funny to you?

Jericho Desu · 11 Jun 2009

In my Handbook of Japanese Verbs by Kodansha I came across this sentence:

車はここに止めるよりあそこに止めるほうが安全です。
Which was translated as:
"It is safer to park the car here than (park) over there."

But I swear it would be the other way around as in:
"It is safer to park the car over there than over here" ?

Am I correct about this? Otherwise the より/ほうが is something quite different from what I originally learnt...

Any help is appreciated

undrentide · 11 Jun 2009

Yes Jericho, your interpretation is correct, the translation in the book is wrong.

Putrefaction · 11 Jun 2009

I also learned the ___ no hou ga ___ yori ___ desu form, if you flip the sentence then you are right! I think they forgot to do so, haha.

Elizabeth · 11 Jun 2009

Putrefaction said:
I also learned the ___ no hou ga ___ yori ___ desu form, if you flip the sentence then you are right! I think they forgot to do so, haha.

--yori--no houga I think is more general. But your way is way cooler and more stylized (convoluted ??).

Putrefaction · 11 Jun 2009

Oh, really! I didn't know that. The way my book teachers it is the opposite.

I guess I should practice it the other way!

Jericho Desu · 11 Jun 2009

Undrentideさんいつもいつもどうもありがとうございました！

Yeah its possible they forgot I mean mistakes happen, but I was so confused by that sentence throughout my train journey, I was like *stares* *looks up and thinks for a while* thinks "wait..." *stares* *looks up and thinks for a while* thinks "wait..." and repeat lol, because I just didn't think Kodansha would make a mistake like that, guess we got to watch out for those.

Putrefaction · 11 Jun 2009

which book are you using?

Jericho Desu · 11 Jun 2009

The Handbook of Japanese Verbs by Taeko Kamiya published by Kodansha (Europe)

Hmm... maybe its the "Europe" guys that made the mistake :?

Nevermind, I pressed Quote instead of Edit

Putrefaction · 11 Jun 2009

Hm, I see. I was thinking of getting that Kodansha dictionary, hopefully there are not that many errors!

Jericho Desu · 11 Jun 2009

I'll let you know if I find any more

aardwolf · 11 Jun 2009

This is the one typo/incorrect point in the dictionary i've noticed.
How do you know... ON/KUN and beyond | Page 11 | Japan Forum

Like toritoribe and elizabeth say, it should be を not に.
I doubt there are alot.

Jericho Desu · 17 Jun 2009

Ok I got another sentence that sounds strange to me, its from Wayne P. Lammers' "Japanese the Manga Way". The books says this is a well known Japanese tongue twister:

今日、坊主がびょうぶにじょうずにボウズの絵を書きました。
Today a priest skillyfully drew a picture of a priest on a folding screen.

Now I just don't understand how びょうぶに is aimed for the priest on the folding chair and not the one who drew him and yet じょうずに is aimed at the one who drew him. At first I thought it should be "Today a priest on a folding screen skillfully drew a priest's picture", but I believe if that was the case it would be びょうぶで instead of に, but I'm not sure.

Any help would be appreciated.

nice gaijin · 17 Jun 2009

Jericho Desu said:
Ok I got another sentence that sounds strange to me, its from Wayne P. Lammers' "Japanese the Manga Way". The books says this is a well known Japanese tongue twister:

今日、坊主がびょうぶにじょうずにボウズの絵を書きました。
Today a priest skillyfully drew a picture of a priest on a folding screen.

Now I just don't understand how びょうぶに is aimed for the priest on the folding chair and not the one who drew him and yet じょうずに is aimed at the one who drew him. At first I thought it should be "Today a priest on a folding screen skillfully drew a priest's picture", but I believe if that was the case it would be びょうぶで instead of に, but I'm not sure.

I think you might have just misread the intention of the sentence; the priest is drawing on the folding screen; the object being drawn on gets the に particle.

黒板に答えを書いてください。 Please write the answer on the blackboard.
掲示板に書き込んだ。 Posted to the bulletin board.
and so on.

で would be either the location where the action takes place, or something by means of which the action was performed...

部屋で徹夜した。 Pulled an all-nighter the room.
筆で習字を練習する。 Practice calligraphy with a brush.
手を使わなくて、足で筆をつかんで絵を描く人がいる。 There are people that don't use their arms, but hold the brush and paint with their feet.

Jericho Desu · 17 Jun 2009

nice gaijin said:
I think you might have just misread the intention of the sentence; the priest is drawing on the folding screen; the object being drawn on gets the に particle.

黒板に答えを書いてください。 Please write the answer on the blackboard.
掲示板に書き込んだ。 Posted to the bulletin board.
and so on.

で would be either the location where the action takes place, or something by means of which the action was performed...

部屋で徹夜した。 Pulled an all-nighter the room.
筆で習字を練習する。 Practice calligraphy with a brush.
手を使わなくて、足で筆をつかんで絵を描く人がいる。 There are people that don't use their arms, but hold the brush and paint with their feet.

I see! Basically the English is what confused me, now it makes sense, its like
紙に絵を書きました but instead of 紙 its on a びょうぶ, man that really had me confused, thanks for clearing that up!

Does this sentence translation sound funny to you?

Jericho Desu

七転八起

undrentide

Japa'n vagyok

Putrefaction

不幸中の幸い. . . がない.

Elizabeth

先輩

Putrefaction

不幸中の幸い. . . がない.

Jericho Desu

七転八起

Putrefaction

不幸中の幸い. . . がない.

Jericho Desu

七転八起

Putrefaction

不幸中の幸い. . . がない.

Jericho Desu

七転八起

aardwolf

キセツハズレ

Jericho Desu

七転八起

nice gaijin

Resident Realist

Jericho Desu

七転八起

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