N1 Grammar · Test 5

The correct order is 3→4→★1→2, forming: 妹は、来月初に引っ越しするのを機に、今まで欲しいと思いつつ買えずにいたソファを買うことにしたそうだ。Option 1 (買えずにいた) fits in the ★ position (3rd slot), where it modifies ソファ (option 2) as a relative clause: 買えずにいたソファ = 'the sofa she had been unable to buy.' The full meaning: 'My sister decided to buy the sofa she had wanted but couldn't afford until now, taking the opportunity of moving at the beginning of next month, or so I heard.'

• 2ソファを買うことにした must come last (4th slot) so that そうだ ('I heard') attaches to it: 買うことにしたそうだ. Placing it in the ★ slot (3rd) would break the sentence before そうだ.
• 3引っ越しするのを機に ('taking the opportunity of moving') must come first (1st slot) right after 来月初に, setting up the reason for buying the sofa. It cannot go in the ★ slot.
• 4今まで欲しいと思いつつ ('while wanting it until now') must come in the 2nd slot, before 買えずにいた, forming the chain 今まで欲しいと思いつつ買えずにいた ('had been wanting but couldn't buy'). Placing it in the ★ slot would break this natural flow.

• 〜を機に（〜をきに） — taking ~ as an opportunity / on the occasion of ~
• 思おもいつつ — while thinking/feeling ~ (implies a contrary reality)
• 買かえずにいた — had been unable to buy (and remained in that state)
• 〜そうだ — I heard that ~ / it is said that ~ (hearsay)

The correct order is 4→1→★3→2, forming: 私の故郷は、自然に囲まれたのどかな所であると言えば聞こえはいいが、要するに周りに田んぼしかない、ただの田舎町だ。Option 3 (聞こえはいいが) fits in the ★ position (3rd slot). The pattern 〜と言えば聞こえはいいが means 'if you say ~, it sounds nice, but…' — a set rhetorical structure. The full meaning: 'If I say my hometown is a peaceful place surrounded by nature, it sounds nice, but in short, it's just a rural town with nothing but rice paddies around.'

• 1と言えば must come in the 2nd slot, right after である (option 4), to form 〜と言えば ('if you say ~'). It pairs with 聞こえはいいが to create the set pattern 〜と言えば聞こえはいいが.
• 2要するに ('in short / to put it simply') must come last (4th slot), introducing the blunt truth that contrasts with the nice-sounding description. Placing it in the ★ slot would break the と言えば…聞こえはいいが pattern.
• 4である must come first (1st slot) to complete the noun phrase 自然に囲まれたのどかな所である ('is a peaceful place surrounded by nature'), which is then quoted by と言えば. It cannot go in the ★ slot.

• のどか — peaceful / tranquil (idyllic countryside)
• 〜と言えば聞こえはいいが（〜といえばきこえはいいが） — if you say ~, it sounds nice, but… (set pattern admitting the description sounds good but the reality is different)
• 要ようするに — in short / to put it simply
• 田たんぼ — rice paddy / rice field

The correct order is 4→1→★2→3, forming: 入社2年目でプロジェクトのリーダーに指名されたときは私ごときこんな大役が新人に務まるのかと不安でいっぱいでしたが、先輩方の厳しくも温かいサポートのおかげで、無事に務めることができました。Option 2 (新人に務まるのかと) fits in the ★ position (3rd slot). The structure is: 私ごとき新人にこんな大役が務まるのかと不安でいっぱいでしたが — 'I was full of anxiety wondering whether such a major role could be handled by a mere novice like me, but…' The phrase 務まるのかと expresses the speaker's anxious doubt, and 不安でいっぱいでしたが (option 3) completes the clause with a concessive 'but.'

• 1こんな大役が ('such a major role') must come in the 2nd slot, after 私ごとき (option 4) and before 新人に務まるのかと (option 2). Together: 私ごとき新人にこんな大役が務まるのかと — 'whether such a major role could be handled by a novice like me.'
• 3不安でいっぱいでしたが ('was full of anxiety, but') must come last (4th slot) to close the subordinate clause with a concessive, leading into the main clause about 先輩方のサポート. Placing it in the ★ slot would leave 新人に務まるのかと dangling.
• 4私ごとき ('a person of my lowly status / someone like me') must come first (1st slot) as a humble modifier of 新人, forming 私ごとき新人に ('by a novice like me'). It cannot go in the ★ slot.

• 私わたしごとき — someone as insignificant as me / a person of my lowly status (humble)
• 大役たいやく — major role / important task
• 務つとまる — can be fulfilled / is manageable (potential form of 務める)
• 〜でいっぱい — full of ~ / filled with ~

The correct order is 2→1→★4→3, forming: 都市開発事業を、地域住民の同意を得ることなしに進めたとして、北市の住民が市長を訴えた。Option 4 (進めた) fits in the ★ position (3rd slot). The key grammar is ことなしに ('without doing ~'), which connects 同意を得ること (option 2) + なしに (option 1) = 'without obtaining consent.' Then 進めた (option 4) + として (option 3) = 'for having proceeded,' where として indicates the grounds/reason for the lawsuit. Full meaning: 'The residents of the north city sued the mayor for having proceeded with the urban development project without obtaining the consent of local residents.'

• 1なしに must come in the 2nd slot, directly after こと (option 2), to form the grammar pattern ことなしに ('without doing ~'). Placing it in the ★ slot would break this fixed construction.
• 2こと must come first (1st slot), attaching to the verb 得る to form 同意を得ること ('obtaining consent'), which is then followed by なしに. It cannot go in the ★ slot.
• 3として must come last (4th slot), attaching to 進めた (option 4) to form 進めたとして ('for having proceeded'), expressing the grounds for the lawsuit. Placing it in the ★ slot would leave 進めた without its necessary particle.

• ことなしに — without doing ~ (formal negative construction: V-ること + なしに)
• 〜として — for ~ / on the grounds of ~ (indicating the reason for an action, here a lawsuit)
• 訴うったえた — sued / filed a lawsuit against
• 同意を得る（どういをえる） — to obtain consent/agreement

The correct order is 2→★3→4→1, forming: 政府が発表した数字によると、昨年4月1日現在における15歳未満の人口は、一昨年と比べて15万人少なく、過去最低となった。Option 3 (における) fits in the ★ position (2nd slot). The phrase 4月1日現在 ('as of April 1') + における ('pertaining to / at') + 15歳未満の人口 ('population under 15') + は (topic marker) creates: 'the population under 15 as of April 1 last year.' Full meaning: 'According to figures released by the government, the population under 15 as of April 1 last year was 150,000 fewer compared to the year before last, hitting a record low.'

• 1は must come last (4th slot) as the topic marker for 15歳未満の人口, setting up the predicate 一昨年と比べて15万人少なく…となった. Placing it in the ★ slot would break the noun phrase における15歳未満の人口.
• 2現在 must come first (1st slot), attaching to 昨年4月1日 to form 昨年4月1日現在 ('as of April 1 last year'), a common official-statistics expression. It cannot go in the ★ slot.
• 415歳未満の人口 ('population under 15') must come in the 3rd slot, after における (option 3), forming the noun phrase that は (option 1) then marks as topic. Placing it in the ★ slot would separate it from its modifier における.

• 〜現在（〜げんざい） — as of ~ (used with dates to mean 'as of that point in time')
• における — at / in / pertaining to (formal particle indicating location or point of reference for a noun)
• 15歳未満（じゅうごさいみまん） — under 15 years old
• 過去最低かこさいてい — record low / lowest in history

The correct answer is 2 (に). The pattern 「AにBといったC」lists two representative items A and B to illustrate a category C. Here, 「Tシャツにジーンズといったカジュアルな格好」means 'casual outfits such as T-shirts and jeans.' The particle に functions as a conjunction meaning 'and' between the two nouns in this listing construction.

• 1を marks the direct object of a verb, but here we need a particle that connects two nouns in a list. It cannot be used to join Tシャツ and ジーンズ in this pattern.
• 3など means 'etc./things like,' but 「Tシャツなどジーンズといった」is grammatically broken—it would awkwardly treat ジーンズ as separate from the など list rather than pairing the two items.
• 4ほど means 'as much as/about' and is used in comparison patterns, not for listing two items. 「Tシャツほどジーンズといった」does not form a valid construction.

• ～に～といった — pattern: 'such things as A and B'; lists representative examples of a category
• カジュアル — casual (clothing/style)
• 格好かっこう — appearance, outfit, getup

The correct answer is 4 (ならではの). 「ならではの」is an N1 grammar point meaning 'unique to / characteristic of / something only possible because of.' 「海の町ならではの新鮮な魚料理」means 'fresh fish dishes unique to a seaside town'—dishes you can enjoy precisely because it is a coastal town. The sentence states that Natsuhara-chō faces the rough sea, so being a seaside town is what makes the fresh fish cuisine special.

• 1なり can mean 'as soon as' (～なり～) or 'according to' (～なりに), but neither fits here. 「海の町なり新鮮な魚料理」does not form a grammatical or meaningful phrase.
• 2なくして means 'without (something), (something else is impossible).' It would require a structure like 「海の町なくして～はありえない」, not the attributive form needed before 新鮮な魚料理.
• 3ながらに means 'while still / as it is,' used in expressions like 「生まれながらに」or 「昔ながらに」. It does not convey 'unique to' and does not fit naturally before 新鮮な魚料理 in this context.

• ならではの — unique to; characteristic of; something only possible because of (a particular place/person/thing)
• 大波おおなみ — large waves, heavy surf
• 海岸に面している（かいがんにめんしている） — facing the coast/seaside
• 誇ほこる — to be proud of, to boast

The correct answer is 3 (なかなか). Here なかなか is used as an intensifier meaning 'quite / fairly / rather.' 「なかなか見事な滝だった」= 'It was quite a magnificent waterfall.' The preceding clause 「さすが…だけあって」('as expected of…') sets up praise, and なかなか intensifies 見事 in a positive sense.

• 1あえて means 'daring to / going out of one's way to / intentionally.' It implies doing something despite difficulty or risk, which does not fit a sentence praising a waterfall's beauty.
• 2まさか means 'surely not / can it really be…?' and is used with expressions of disbelief or surprise (often with ～だろう/～ないだろう). It does not pair with a straightforward positive statement like 見事な滝だった.
• 4かえって means 'on the contrary / rather.' It signals an unexpected or contrary result, which contradicts the straightforward praise expected after さすが～だけあって.

• なかなか — quite, fairly, rather (intensifier); also 'not easily' when used with negative (なかなか～ない)
• さすが — as expected, as one would expect
• 有数ゆうすう — one of the best, among the foremost
• 水量すいりょう — volume of water (in a river/waterfall)
• 見事みごと — splendid, magnificent, admirable

The correct answer is 1 (見逃す). The pattern 「～ところだった」means 'I was about to (do something) / I almost (did something).' The sentence means: 'Thank you for the movie info. If you hadn't told me, I was about to miss it. I'll go see it tomorrow.' The correct form is the dictionary form 見逃す before ところでした: 「見逃すところでした」= 'I almost missed it (seeing it).' Note: 見逃す here means 'to miss (a movie/opportunity),' i.e., fail to go see it, not 'to overlook/let slip.'

• 2見逃さなかったところでした is grammatically invalid. The ところだった pattern requires the dictionary (ru-form) of a verb, not the past tense. The negative past form cannot precede ところだった in this construction.
• 3見逃せる is the potential form of 見逃す ('can miss / can let go'). 「見逃せるところでした」would mean 'I was about to be able to miss it,' which is nonsensical—you don't 'become able to miss' something as a near-miss event.
• 4見逃せなかった is the negative potential ('couldn't miss'). 「見逃せなかったところでした」is both grammatically odd with ところだった and semantically backwards—it would suggest the speaker almost couldn't miss it, the opposite of the intended meaning.

• ～ところだった — was about to ~; almost did ~ (expresses a near-miss or something that nearly happened)
• 見逃みのがす — to miss (a movie/event/opportunity); to overlook, to let slip by
• 早速さっそく — immediately, right away

The correct answer is 3 (失われかねない). The grammar point 「～かねない」means 'there is a risk/danger that ~ might happen' and is used for undesirable outcomes. 「このままでは」('at this rate / if things continue like this') sets up a warning about a negative future possibility: 'at this rate, the precious traditional techniques might be lost.' The verb is 失われる (passive of 失う 'to lose') + かねない.

• 1失われたようだ means 'it seems to have been lost,' describing a past/completed state. But the context (このままでは = 'if things go on like this') points to a future risk, not something already lost.
• 2失われかけている means 'is beginning to be lost / is in the process of being lost.' While the aging of craftsmen is ongoing, このままでは expresses a conditional warning about what might happen in the future, not a description of a current gradual process. かけている describes an in-progress action rather than a risk.
• 4失われてはならない means 'must not be lost.' While morally true, it expresses a normative statement (what should/shouldn't be) rather than the predictive warning that このままでは calls for. The sentence is warning about what might happen, not declaring a principle.

• ～かねない — might ~; there is a risk/danger that ~ will happen (used for undesirable outcomes)
• このままでは — at this rate; if things continue like this
• せっかく — with great effort; precious (emphasizes the value of something)
• 和紙職人わししょくにん — washi (Japanese paper) craftsman/artisan
• 高齢化こうれいか — aging (of population/workforce)
• 失うしなわれる — to be lost (passive of 失う)