N1 Grammar · Test 34

あっても here comes from にある + ても, meaning 'even if (one is) in ~.' The sentence reads: 'No matter what difficult situation you may be in (どのような困難な状況にあっても), you must not give up.' The pattern 〜にあっても means 'even in/under ~,' expressing that regardless of the circumstances, the conclusion holds.

• 1つける does not form a valid pattern with に in this context. につけて is not a standard grammar point that fits here.
• 2にとって means 'for (someone)' (e.g., 私にとって 'for me'). 困難な状況にとって makes no sense — situations are not perspectives from which something is evaluated.
• 4かけても does not form a valid expression with に here. にかけても is not a standard pattern, and even if interpreted as 'even betting on,' it does not fit the meaning.

• にあっても — even in/under (a situation); even if one is in ~
• 困難こんなん — difficulty; hardship
• 状況じょうきょう — situation; circumstances

こそ is an emphatic particle meaning 'precisely' or 'exactly.' The pattern 〜ばこそ means 'precisely because ~' and emphasizes the reason. The sentence reads: 'It is precisely because of her efforts (彼女の働きがあればこそ) that the plan is proceeding smoothly.' This highlights that her contributions are the exact reason for the success.

• 2しか means 'only' and must be followed by a negative predicate (〜しか〜ない). The sentence ends with 進んでいるのだ (affirmative), so しか is grammatically impossible.
• 3すら means 'even' and is used to express surprise at an extreme case (e.g., 子供ですらできる 'even a child can do it'). あればすら is not a valid construction and does not convey 'because of.'
• 4だけ means 'only.' あればだけ is not a valid grammatical pattern. While 〜ば〜だけ (the more... the more...) exists, it requires a parallel structure (e.g., 頑張れば頑張るだけ), which is not the case here.

• ばこそ — precisely because ~; exactly because ~ (emphasizes the reason)
• 働はたらき — efforts; contributions; work
• 順調じゅんちょう — smooth; going well

してまで is formed from する→して + まで, meaning 'even going so far as to ~.' The sentence reads: 'I was appalled to hear that he went out to have fun even going so far as to borrow money (借金してまで遊びに行った).' This expresses disapproval at the extreme measure taken.

• 2せずとも means 'even without doing ~' (せず = without doing, とも = even). This would mean 'even without borrowing money, he went out to play,' which contradicts the sentence's tone of shock at the extreme behavior.
• 3にからんで means 'in connection with ~' or 'intertwined with ~.' 借金にからんで would mean 'in connection with the debt,' which does not convey the intended meaning of 'going so far as to borrow.'
• 4とあいまって means 'combined with ~' or 'together with ~.' 借金とあいまって would mean 'combined with borrowing money,' which does not fit the structure or meaning of the sentence.

• 〜てまで — even going so far as to ~ (expresses doing something extreme, often with disapproval)
• 借金しゃっきん — borrowing money; debt
• あきれる — to be appalled; to be dumbfounded

ならいざしらず means 'if it were ~, that would be one thing (but...).' It is used to say that something might be understandable for X, but not for Y. The sentence reads: 'If it were an elementary school student, that would be one thing (小学生ならいざしらず), but I can't believe a university student can't do such a simple calculation.' This perfectly contrasts the two groups.

• 1ともなれば means 'when it comes to ~' or 'once one reaches the level of ~,' implying that at a certain status/level, a certain behavior is expected. 小学生ともなれば would mean 'once someone is an elementary school student,' which does not set up the contrast needed here.
• 2にさきがけて means 'before ~' or 'preceding ~.' 小学生にさきがけて would mean 'before elementary school students,' which makes no sense in this context.
• 3でもしかたなく is not a standard grammar pattern. Even if parsed as でも + しかたなく ('even so, it can't be helped'), it does not create the contrastive 'if it were X, that'd be one thing, but Y...' structure the sentence requires.

• ならいざしらず — if it were ~, that would be one thing (but...); one thing for ~, but not for ~
• 計算けいさん — calculation
• 信しんじられない — unbelievable; cannot believe

がきっかけで means '~ was the trigger/opportunity for' or '~ prompted (someone) to.' The sentence reads: 'Seeing the miserable state of the children was the trigger for starting this support activity (悲惨な子どもたちの姿を見たのがきっかけで、この支援活動を始めたのです).' The noun before がきっかけで is the event that caused or prompted the action.

• 1に関して means 'regarding ~' or 'concerning ~.' 見たのに関して would mean 'regarding having seen,' which does not convey causation or a triggering event.
• 2を除いて means 'except for ~' or 'excluding ~.' 見たのを除いて would mean 'except for having seen,' which makes no sense in this sentence about why the activity was started.
• 3もかまわず means 'without caring about ~' or 'without regard for ~.' 見たのもかまわず would mean 'without caring about having seen,' which is both unnatural and contrary to the intended meaning — seeing the children was precisely what motivated the action.

• がきっかけで — ~ was the trigger/opportunity for; prompted by ~
• 悲惨ひさん — tragic; miserable; heartbreaking
• 支援活動しえんかつどう — support activity; relief effort

「〜限りだ」 attaches to adjectives (often emotional ones like 寂しい, 嬉しい, 恥ずかしい) and expresses that the feeling is at its utmost extent — 'I am as lonely/sad as can be'. 「寂しい限りだ」 thus means 'I am extremely lonely/sad'. This is the correct pattern for expressing the depth of an emotion.

• 1「〜ほかない」 means 'have no choice but to...' and attaches to dictionary-form verbs (e.g., 諦めるほかない). It does not attach to adjectives like 寂しい and does not express degree of emotion.
• 2「〜に限る」 means 'nothing is better than...' / 'is the best', expressing a recommendation or preference (e.g., 夏はビールに限る). It does not describe the extent of one's sadness.
• 4「〜にほかならない」 means 'is nothing other than...' / 'is precisely...', used to assert that something is exactly a certain thing (e.g., 努力の結果にほかならない). It does not attach to emotional adjectives to express degree.

• 限かぎりだ — as ... as can be; extremely — used with adjectives expressing emotion to indicate the feeling is at its maximum extent
• ほかない — have no choice but to; cannot help but (〜するほかない)
• に限る（にかぎる） — is the best; nothing beats〜
• にほかならない — is nothing other than; is precisely