This is the first part of chapter 2, from p.99 to 105. A rather short one this time!
Reading notes
- 葬儀・そうぎ funeral service
- 絡み・からみ involvement
- 煩雑・はんざつ complex, troublesome
- 解剖・かいぼう appeared in chapter 2-2, it means autopsy
- 縫合・ほうごう suture, seam, stitch
p99. “訊かないはずがなく、…” A double negative form, using the はずがない grammar which means, “cannot be, impossible”. So the phrase means that people cannot not ask (the cause of death)”. 訊く・きく is used by Higashino Keigo instead of 聞く to mean “to ask”, 聞く is mostly used to mean “to hear”.
- 避難・ひなん criticism, blame, reproach
- ゆえに therefore, consequently
- 号泣・ごうきゅう lamentation, wailing
- なだめる to calm, to pacify
- 打ち解ける・うちとける to open one’s heart
- 馴染み・なじみ intimacy, friendship
When Kaga calls to ask if Yasumasa will go to his sister’s appartement he uses “行かれる”・いかれる. I read on a forum that it was a little less polite and formal than いらっしゃる. Honorific language is not easy… 😕 BUT I saw once in a bookshop a japanese book to learn how to use 敬語・けいご (honorific language) properly… and it was not a book for foreigners who learn Japanese. The book was aiming at Japanese people. (hehe! so they are struggling, too!)
A little further, Kaga asks when Yasumasa will come to Tokyo again and uses: “いらっしゃる” so there can’t be such a big difference if you can use both honorific forms during the same conversation…
- 割り切る・わりきる to give a clear explanation
- 痕跡・こんせき trace, vestige
- ハスキー husky voice. I had no idea what a husky voice was before…
- けだるい・気だるい languid
- 身構える・みがまえる to put oneself on guard
- こだわる to be particular about, to fuss over
- 戸惑う・とまどう confusion, being at sea
- 絶句・ぜっく being lost for words, becoming speechless
- 呆然・ぼうぜん dumbfounded
- 大げさ・おおげさ grandiose, exaggerated
- 嘆く・なげく grief, lamentation
- 突き止める・つきとめる to determine
Many things have occurred in only 6 pages… I like detective novels with a good pace!
Expressions worth remembering
p. 100: “口を揃えて…” saying in chorus… be unanimous in saying
“… 山のようにあった” meaning that there is a stalk of things to do.
p. 102: 康政は我に返った“ 我に返る・われにかえる means “to come to one’s senses”. We have exactly the same expression in French : “revenir à soi” (come back to oneself).
About
I’m learning Japanese, Korean and Chinese to read detective novels in these languages. I post about my reading progress and language study here. Best way to get in touch is on Mastodon 🙂
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