N1 Grammar · Test 59

にひきかえ means 'in contrast to / as opposed to.' The sentence contrasts the speaker's youth (when playing tennis all day was no problem) with the present (when just one hour makes their legs stop moving). それにひきかえ = 'in contrast to that,' which perfectly links the two contrasting situations.

• 1をふまえて means 'based on / taking into consideration.' There is no basis or premise being referenced here; the sentence is about contrast, not grounding something on a fact.
• 2をよそに means 'ignoring / disregarding / despite.' This would imply someone is ignoring something, which does not fit the contrastive structure.
• 3にかかわり means 'in relation to / concerning.' This does not express the contrast between past and present that the sentence requires.

• 〜にひきかえ — in contrast to, as opposed to
• 〜をふまえて — based on, taking into consideration
• 〜をよそに — ignoring, disregarding, despite
• 〜にかかわり — in relation to, concerning

だって is an emphatic particle used to express surprise or disbelief, meaning 'even' or 'what, ...?!' Here, B reacts with shock: 'Thursday?!' (木曜日だって？). This conveys the surprise and dismay that the deadline was moved up to Thursday, followed by 'there's no way I can make it.'

• 1とか means 'or something like that.' It would soften the statement (Thursday or something?), which does not convey the strong surprise B is expressing.
• 2ときたら means 'speaking of / when it comes to,' used to introduce a topic, often with a tone of complaint. It does not fit as a reaction of shock to new information.
• 4だこと is a sentence-final emotive particle (typically feminine) expressing admiration or emotion. It does not fit as a surprised question reaction.

• 〜だって — even (emphatic); also used to express surprise: 'what, ...?!'
• 〜とか — or something like that
• 〜ときたら — speaking of, when it comes to (often with complaint)
• 〜だこと — emotive sentence-final particle (feminine, expressing feeling)

変えられてはかなわない means 'being changed (repeatedly) is unbearable / too much to take.' The passive 変えられる indicates the tax rate keeps being changed by the authorities, and 〜てはかなわない expresses that this repeated change is intolerable. The sentence says the rate was lowered this year but will go up next year — changing so many times in a short period is unbearable.

• 1変えられるにこしたことはない means 'it would be best if it were changed.' This would express a preference for changes, which contradicts the speaker's frustration at repeated changes.
• 3変えるにも変えられない means 'cannot change even if one wanted to.' The speaker is not trying to change anything themselves; they are complaining about the rate being changed by others.
• 4変えるどころではない means 'there's no question of changing / it's not even at the level of changing.' This does not fit the context of complaining about repeated changes.

• 〜てはかなわない — doing X is unbearable / too much to take (expresses frustration at repeated or excessive action)
• 〜にこしたことはない — it would be best to, nothing is better than
• 〜にも〜ない — cannot do even if one wants to (V-るにも V-ない)
• 〜どころではない — not even at the level of / far from (doing X)

とします (from とする) means 'suppose / assume.' あるとします = 'suppose there is.' The sentence sets up a hypothetical: 'Suppose there were a machine here that could stop time. What would you do with it?' This is a classic hypothetical-setting pattern.

• 2といって差し支えありません means 'I can say without objection / it is fine to say.' This would be used when affirming something can be stated openly, not for setting up a hypothetical scenario.
• 3ものですか is a rhetorical question pattern meaning 'how could it be that...' or 'there's no way...' It expresses disbelief, not a supposition.
• 4ものではありません means 'it is not something that should happen / one should not.' This expresses prohibition or negation, not a hypothetical.

• 〜とする — to suppose, to assume (hypothetical: 'suppose that...')
• 〜といって差し支えない（〜といってさしつかえない） — it is fine to say, there is no problem saying
• 〜ものですか — rhetorical: how could it be that... / there's no way...
• 〜ものではない — one should not / it is not something that should be done

ことはない means 'there is no need to / you don't have to.' The sentence says 'There's no need for you to feel responsible all by yourself. If you keep worrying that much, you'll ruin your health.' This is a reassuring/comforting statement telling the person not to bear the burden alone.

• 1にちがいない means 'there is no doubt that / surely.' This would assert that the person definitely feels responsible alone, which does not fit the comforting tone of the second sentence.
• 2わけではない means 'it's not that / it doesn't mean that.' While this could partially work, it would mean 'it's not that you feel responsible alone,' which denies the fact rather than advising against it. The context calls for advice ('don't do that'), not denial.
• 3はずがない means 'there's no way / it's impossible that.' This would mean 'there's no way you feel responsible alone,' which denies the possibility rather than offering comfort.

• 〜ことはない — there is no need to / you don't have to (reassurance)
• 〜にちがいない — there is no doubt that, surely
• 〜わけではない — it's not that, it doesn't mean that (partial denial)
• 〜はずがない — there's no way, it's impossible that

The sentence says: 'This fuel doesn't pollute the air, and costs are kept low. It's truly nothing but good things.' ずくめだ means 'entirely/nothing but〜,' used when something consists entirely of one type of thing. いいことずくめだ = 'it's nothing but good things,' which perfectly matches the two positive points listed (clean air + low cost).

• 1だけではすまない means 'it won't be settled with just〜' or '〜 alone won't be enough,' implying something more serious is needed. This doesn't fit the positive context.
• 2きわまる means 'extremely〜' and can attach to some nouns (e.g., 愚の極まる), but いいこと極まる is not a natural collocation, and it doesn't capture the 'nothing but good things' nuance as well as ずくめだ.
• 4にとどまらない means 'is not limited to〜' or 'doesn't stop at〜,' suggesting the scope extends further. This contradicts the sentence, which is summarizing the benefits.

• ずくめ — entirely, nothing but (used with nouns: Nずくめ)
• 極きわまる — extremely, to the utmost
• にとどまらない — not limited to, not stopping at
• だけではすまない — won't be settled with just〜

The sentence means: 'There's no need to go all the way to such a far shop to buy it. If you order by phone, it'll arrive right away.' までもない means 'there is no need to〜' or 'it is not necessary to go so far as to〜.' 買いに行くまでもない = 'no need to go buy (it in person),' which is supported by the reason given: 電話で注文すればすぐ届く ('if you order by phone it arrives quickly').

• 1始末だ means 'end up doing〜' (with a negative nuance about an undesirable situation). It doesn't fit — the speaker is saying there's no need, not complaining about a bad outcome.
• 2よりほかない means 'have no choice but to〜,' implying necessity. The speaker is saying the opposite — there's no need to go.
• 3のも同然だ means 'it's practically the same as〜' or 'it's as good as having done〜.' It doesn't fit grammatically or semantically here.

• までもない — no need to (do something); not necessary to go so far as to
• 始末しまつだ — end up (doing something undesirable); the state of things having gotten to this point
• よりほかない — have no choice but to
• のも同然だ（のもどうぜんだ） — it is practically the same as〜

The sentence means: 'I called my friend who is absent from school many times, but can't get through. I wonder if something happened — I can't help but worry.' 心配でならない means 'I can't help but worry' / 'I am worried sick.' The pattern 〜でならない expresses an uncontrollable feeling or emotion: 心配でならない = 'so worried that I can't stand it.' This fits the context of calling repeatedly and not getting through.

• 1心配してはいけない means 'you must not worry,' which is a prohibition. The speaker is clearly worried, not telling themselves not to worry.
• 3心配でもない means 'I'm not particularly worried,' which contradicts the context — the speaker has called many times and is clearly anxious.
• 4心配しかねない means 'might worry' or 'is likely to worry,' used to describe a third party's potential undesirable action, not one's own uncontrollable feeling. It doesn't fit the first-person emotional context.

• 〜でならない — can't help but feel〜; so〜that one can't stand it (expresses uncontrollable emotion)
• しかねない — might do〜; is liable to do〜 (used for undesirable actions by others)
• 通つうじない — can't get through (phone doesn't connect)

The sentence means: 'In modern times we have become materially affluent. Therefore, I think it is unavoidable that young people who don't understand the value of things are increasing.' 増えてもやむを得ない means 'it can't be helped that they increase' / 'it is inevitable that they increase.' The pattern 〜てもやむを得ない expresses that something is unavoidable given the circumstances. This fits the cause-and-effect logic: material abundance → young people not valuing things → increase is inevitable.

• 2増えてはかなわない means 'it would be unbearable if they increase.' 〜てはかなわない expresses that something is too much to bear. This doesn't fit with と思う in this context — the speaker is making a logical observation, not complaining about an unbearable situation.
• 3増えるべきだ means 'they should increase,' which would mean the speaker thinks it's desirable for such young people to increase. This contradicts the sentence's tone, which is a resigned observation, not endorsement.
• 4増えるものか means 'there's no way they'll increase' — a strong denial. This contradicts the だから ('therefore') logic, which expects an increase as a natural consequence.

• 〜てもやむを得ない（〜てもやむをえない） — it can't be helped that〜; it is unavoidable that〜
• 〜てはかなわない — it's unbearable when〜; too〜 to stand
• ものの大切さ（もののたいせつさ） — the value/importance of things
• 物質的に豊か（ぶっしつてきにゆたか） — materially affluent/abundant

The correct option is 2. The grammar point being tested is 「〜だけ（まだ）ましだ」, which means 'it is still better that...' or 'at least...'. It is used when comparing a less-than-ideal situation to an even worse alternative. In this sentence, the company's performance dropped due to rising oil prices, which is bad. However, at least they are not operating at a loss. Therefore, 'it is still better that no loss occurs' (損失が出ない) fits the context perfectly.

• 1利益にならない (not becoming a profit) is illogical in this context. While performance dropping might mean the company isn't making a profit, saying 'it is still better that it doesn't bring a profit' makes no sense, as making a profit is the goal of a company.
• 3給料がもらえない (cannot receive a salary) is an undesirable situation. It would be nonsensical to say 'it is still better that we cannot receive our salary' when the company's performance has merely dropped.
• 4仕事ができない (cannot work) is also an undesirable situation. Stating 'it is still better that we cannot work' does not make logical sense in the context of a drop in business performance.

• 業績ぎょうせき — business performance, results
• ましだ — better, preferable (used to indicate that something is not ideal but better than the alternative)
• 損失そんしつ — loss, deficit
• 利益りえき — profit, gains