Meaning & usage
とでも言うべき attaches to a noun and creates a noun phrase meaning the thing could be given some name or label, often when the exact word is hard to choose. It commonly appears inside relative clauses modifying a noun, as in all four examples, and can soften a claim, as in とでも言うべきでしょう.
Example sentences 4
-
彼の部屋はゴミ捨て場とでも言うべき状態になっていた。
His room had turned into what you might best describe as a garbage dump.
-
あの二人の関係は、戦友とでも言うべきものだった。
The relationship between those two was something you might call comradeship in battle.
-
この町には、秘密の宝庫とでも言うべき店がいくつかある。
In this town there are a few shops that could best be described as secret treasure troves.
-
彼の発言は、事実上の降伏宣言とでも言うべきでしょう。
His statement might best be described as a de facto declaration of surrender.