N1 Grammar · Test 32

「気がしないでもないが」is a double-negative expression meaning 'it's not that I don't feel…' = 'I do feel (somewhat)…' The speaker is conceding: 'I do have a slight feeling that there are still some issues with the structure, but the content itself has improved considerably.' This nuanced partial concession fits perfectly.

• 1「気がすることはないが」means 'there is no possibility of feeling…' = 'I don't feel at all.' This is too absolute and contradicts the concessive structure that should acknowledge a slight concern before praising the content.
• 3「気がするよりほかないが」means 'there is nothing to do but feel…' This implies inevitability/necessity, which is unnatural for expressing a mild subjective impression about a paper's structure.
• 4「気がしないのではないが」is a confused double-negative that is grammatically unnatural in Japanese. The correct double-negative concession form is しないでもない, not しないのではない.

• 構成こうせい — structure, organization (of a text)
• 内容自体ないようじたい — the content itself

Option 1「行くわけじゃあるまいし」is correct. The pattern「〜わけじゃあるまいし」means 'it's not like〜' or 'it's not as if〜,' and is used to dismiss or belittle a concern, implying the situation isn't extreme enough to warrant the action. The wife is saying: 'It's not like you're going overseas for weeks, so you don't need such a big suitcase this time, do you?' This fits the context perfectly — a weekend trip doesn't require a large suitcase meant for extended overseas travel.

• 2「行くもんだっただろうに」combines もんだ（should have）with だろうに（expressing regret/wish), meaning 'you should have gone...' — grammatically and semantically nonsensical here. The sentence needs a dismissive 'it's not like〜' pattern, not a regretful one.
• 3「行くわけだったんだから」means 'since it was the case that (you) were going...' — this affirms the overseas trip rather than dismissing it, contradicting the wife's point that the trip is short and doesn't need a big suitcase.
• 4「行くもんじゃないだろうけど」means 'it's probably not something (you) should do, but...' — this expresses prohibition/doubt about going, which doesn't fit. The wife isn't questioning whether the husband should go; she's saying the trip is short.

• 〜わけじゃあるまいし — it's not like〜; it's not as if〜 (used to dismiss a concern as unnecessary)
• スーツケース — suitcase

Option 2「お聞かせ願えますか」is correct.「お聞かせする」is the humble form of「聞かせる」(to let someone hear/to show).「〜願えますか」is a polite request meaning 'could I ask you to〜.' Together,「お聞かせ願えますか」= 'Could I ask you to let us hear (your feelings)?' The reporter is politely requesting the director to share his feelings, which fits the interview context perfectly.

• 1「お聞きいただけません」uses 尊敬語 (honorific) form of 聞く, meaning 'won't you listen?' — but the reporter wants to HEAR the director's feelings, not ask the director to listen to something. The direction of the action is wrong.
• 3「お話になるでしょうか」is 尊敬語 for 話す, meaning 'will you speak?' — while grammatically possible, it's less natural as a request in an interview setting. It sounds like asking whether the director will talk rather than requesting him to share his feelings.
• 4「お話し申し上げましょうか」is 謙譲語 (humble) for 話す, meaning 'shall I speak/tell?' — this would mean the REPORTER offers to speak, which is the opposite of what's needed. The reporter should be asking the director to speak.

• お聞かせする（おきかせする） — humble form of 聞かせる: to let (the listener) hear, to share/show
• 〜願える（〜ねがえる） — can I ask you to〜 (polite request pattern)

Option 3「くらいはいいとしても」is correct.「〜くらいはいいとしても」means 'even if ~ is tolerable/acceptable.' The sentence says: 'Even if mild itching is tolerable, in severe cases it can be so painful that people can't open their eyes.' The structure「Aくらいはいいとしても、B」sets up a contrast: A is manageable, but B is serious. This fits perfectly — mild itching (多少かゆくなる) is bearable, but severe pain is not.

• 1「までにならないとしても」means 'even if it doesn't reach the level of〜.' The sentence would read 'even if it doesn't reach the level of your eyes getting somewhat itchy' — this is backwards. The mild itching does happen; the point is that it's tolerable compared to severe cases.
• 2「めでにならないとすれば」contains a transcription error (めで→まで) and even corrected,「までにならないとすれば」means 'if it doesn't reach〜,' which doesn't create the needed contrast structure. The sentence needs 'even if A is okay, B is serious,' not a conditional.
• 4「くらいでいいとすれば」means 'if we assume ~ is fine' — this uses とすれば (if we assume) rather than としても (even if), creating a conditional rather than a concession. The sentence needs a concessive structure ('even if A is okay, B is worse'), not a conditional.

• 〜くらいはいいとしても — even if ~ is tolerable/acceptable (used to contrast with a worse situation)
• 花粉症かふんしょう — hay fever, pollen allergy
• 立ち退き（たちのき） — eviction, moving out (forced relocation)

Option 3「受け入れがたいのではないか」is correct.「受け入れがたい」means 'hard to accept' (受け入れる + がたい = difficult to).「〜のではないか」expresses the speaker's supposition ('isn't it likely that〜'). The sentence reads: 'Even if one can understand the significance of the redevelopment, for people who have been doing business there for years, closing or relocating is unwilling (不本意), and it seems they would find it hard to accept immediately.' The combination「すぐには受け入れがたい」(hard to accept immediately) is natural and fits the context of reluctant shop owners.

• 1「受け入れずにすまないのではないか」is overly convoluted.「〜ずにすまない」means 'cannot get away without doing〜' (obligation), so this would mean 'won't they be unable to get away without NOT accepting it' — a double negative that is confusing and doesn't convey the intended meaning of reluctance.
• 2「受け入れないにかぎるではないか」is grammatically broken.「〜に限る」means '〜is the best,' but「受け入れないに限るではないか」doesn't form a proper sentence. The particle に after 受け入れない is ungrammatical here.
• 4「受け入れないではないか」is grammatically incomplete.「〜ないではないか」doesn't form a standard grammatical pattern. It lacks the がたい (hard to) or other key element that would make it express the difficulty of acceptance.

• 受け入れがたい（うけいれがたい） — hard to accept, difficult to accept (受け入れる + がたい: difficult to〜)
• 不本意ふほんい — contrary to one's wishes, unwilling, reluctant
• 立ち退き（たちのき） — eviction, forced relocation
• 再開発さいかいはつ — redevelopment

The correct answer is 4 (はずだ). どうりで〜はずだ is a common paired pattern meaning 'no wonder...' — どうりで expresses 'now I understand why,' and はずだ gives the logical reason. A says: 'Oh, right. No wonder it's empty.' The realization (it's a holiday) explains the observed fact (the train is empty).

• 1こともある means 'there are also times when...' and does not pair with どうりで. It would mean 'there are also times when it's empty,' which misses the 'no wonder' nuance entirely.
• 2に決まってる means 'it's certain/definitely.' While it expresses strong conviction, どうりで...に決まってる is not an established paired pattern, and the nuance of 'no wonder (now that I know the reason)' is best captured by はずだ.
• 3に違いない means 'must be / undoubtedly.' Like option 2, it expresses strong inference but does not form the standard どうりで〜 pattern. はずだ is the natural collocation with どうりで for 'no wonder.'

• どうりで — no wonder, that explains it (used when one discovers the reason for something)
• 〜はずだ — it should be, no wonder (expresses logical expectation based on a reason)
• 時間帯じかんたい — time band, time slot
• 祝日しゅくじつ — national holiday

The correct answer is 1 (ことはないにしても). The pattern 〜にしても means 'even if ~ / even though ~.' Here, ことはないにしても means 'even if it is not the case that ~.' The full sentence reads: 'Even if Yamada's political influence is not completely lost, it will certainly weaken.' This concedes a hypothetical (it may not be fully lost) while asserting the main point (it will definitely weaken).

• 2ことはないにもかかわらず means 'despite the fact that it is not ~.' にもかかわらず presents the first clause as an established fact, not a hypothetical. The sentence needs a concessive hypothetical ('even if'), not 'despite the fact that,' because whether the influence is completely lost is uncertain.
• 3ほかはないにしても is ungrammatical in this context. ほかはない means 'there is no other choice but to ~' and does not connect logically with 完全に失われる ('be completely lost'). The sentence is about degree of loss, not about having no alternative.
• 4ほかはないにもかかわらず combines 'despite' with 'no choice but to,' which is both grammatically and semantically inappropriate here.

• にしても — even if ~ / even though ~ (concessive)
• にもかかわらず — despite the fact that ~ / in spite of
• 失うしなわれる — to be lost
• 弱よわまる — to weaken

The correct answer is 1 (なくてはならないからといって). なくてはならない means 'must be / indispensable,' and からといって means 'just because ~ (doesn't mean ~).' The sentence reads: 'Some people say childcare until age 3 should be done by the mother, but just because the mother is indispensable for childcare, I don't necessarily think that's the case.' The からといって pattern sets up the expected reasoning and then negates it with 必ずしもそうではない.

• 2なくてはならないかというと means 'if you ask whether (the mother) is indispensable ~.' This かというと pattern is used to question and then reframe, but it does not connect well with 必ずしもそうではないと思う at the end. The sentence needs 'just because X doesn't mean Y,' which requires からといって.
• 3あるわけにはいかないからといって means 'just because (the mother) cannot be ~.' With ある following 母親で, it would mean 'just because the mother cannot exist,' which is nonsensical in this context.
• 4あるわけにはいかないかというと combines the wrong verb form (ある) with the かというと pattern, producing a meaningless clause.

• なくてはならない — must be / cannot do without / indispensable
• からといって — just because ~ (doesn't necessarily mean ~)
• 必かならずしも — not necessarily (used with negative)

The correct answer is 2 (などするものか). ものか is a strong rhetorical negative meaning 'I would never ~ / there's no way I would ~.' など adds a dismissive tone ('something like ~'). The sentence reads: 'I should have firmly vowed never to do something like falling in love again, but before I knew it, I had fallen in love with her.' The など dismisses love as something trivial/unworthy, and ものか expresses the strong refusal, fitting perfectly with 固く心に誓った ('firmly vowed').

• 1こそするものか means 'I would never do precisely that.' こそ emphasizes/identifies a specific thing, but here the speaker is dismissing love in general as something they'd never do, not singling out a particular instance. など (dismissive 'something like') is the natural fit, not こそ (emphatic identification).
• 3こそするものなのか is a question form (ものなのか), which does not match 固く心に誓った ('firmly vowed'). A vow is a statement of determination, not a question.
• 4などするものなのか is also a question form, incompatible with the declarative vow structure 固く心に誓ったはずだった.

• ものか — I would never ~ / there is no way I would ~ (strong rhetorical negative)
• など — things like ~ / such a thing as ~ (dismissive)
• 固く心に誓う（かたくこころにちかう） — to firmly vow in one's heart
• 知らず知らずのうちに（しらずしらずのうちに） — before one knows it / unconsciously

The correct answer is 3 (しようとしたにすぎず). しようとした means 'attempted to,' and にすぎず means 'merely / nothing more than.' The sentence reads: 'The opinion paper I submitted the other day merely attempted to point out the problems in the process leading to the decision, and is not intended to oppose the decision itself.' The にすぎず ... ではありません structure creates a contrast: 'it only did X, it did not do Y.'

• 1しそうになったにすぎず means 'merely almost pointed out.' しそうになった indicates something nearly happened but did not, which contradicts the context — the paper did point out problems, it didn't almost point them out.
• 2しそうになったほどで is ungrammatical. ほどで does not follow しそうになった naturally, and the 'almost did' meaning is wrong here regardless.
• 4しようとしたほどで is grammatically incorrect. ほどで ('to the extent that') does not pair with しようとした in this construction. The correct pattern is 〜にすぎず ('merely ~').

• にすぎず — merely / nothing more than (written-style)
• しようとした — attempted to do ~
• しそうになった — almost did ~ (but didn't)
• プロセス — process
• 指摘してき — pointing out