N2 Grammar · Test 18

おかげで (おかげで) means 'thanks to ~' and is used when expressing gratitude for a positive outcome. The sentence says 'Thanks to everyone, we were able to safely hold the closing ceremony,' which is a positive result, so おかげで is correct.

• 1せいで means 'because of ~' and carries a negative nuance, used when blaming something for a bad result. It does not fit a sentence expressing gratitude for a successful event.
• 2わけで means 'for that reason / because' and is used to state a logical reason, not to express gratitude. It does not naturally precede a positive outcome of thanks.
• 4きっかけで means 'triggered by / as an opportunity' and describes something that served as a starting point. It does not express the idea of 'thanks to everyone's support/help.'

• おかげで — thanks to ~ (positive gratitude)
• せいで — because of ~ (negative blame)
• きっかけで — as a trigger / on the occasion of
• 閉会式へいかいしき — closing ceremony

限りでは (かぎりでは) means 'as far as ~' and is used to express the scope of one's judgment based on investigation or observation. 'きのう私が調べた限りでは' = 'As far as I investigated yesterday,' which naturally fits the sentence about finding no problems with the factory machinery.

• 2次第では (しだいでは) means 'depending on ~ / according to how things go.' It implies conditional variation, not the scope of an investigation.
• 3うえでは (うえでは) means 'after doing ~ / on the basis of having done ~.' While it can follow a past action, it does not convey 'as far as I can tell from my investigation,' which is the nuance needed here.
• 4ようでは (ようでは) means 'if it is the case that ~' and carries a negative or conditional nuance. It does not fit the context of reporting findings from an investigation.

• 限かぎりでは — as far as (one's knowledge/investigation goes)
• 次第しだいでは — depending on the situation
• 工場こうじょう — factory
• 機械きかい — machinery

食べかけの (たべかけの) means 'half-eaten / partially eaten' and describes food that someone has started eating but not finished. A cake left on a table that has been partially eaten is exactly 食べかけの, so this is correct.

• 1食べぬいた is not a standard form. The correct verb form would be 食べ抜いた (たべぬいた), meaning 'ate through completely / persevered in eating,' which implies finishing, not partial eating.
• 3食べきった (たべきった) means 'ate completely / finished eating entirely.' A completely eaten cake would not still be sitting on the table.
• 4食べはじめの (たべはじめの) means 'just started eating.' While close in meaning, this is not a natural collocation in Japanese; かけ is the standard suffix for 'in the middle of / partially done.'

• 食たべかけ — half-eaten, partially eaten (V-stem + かけ: in the middle of doing)
• 食たべきった — ate completely (V-stem + きる: to do completely)
• 食べ抜いた（たべぬいた） — ate through to the end, persevered in eating

ことから (ことから) means 'from the fact that ~ / because' and is used to state a reason or basis for a conclusion or nickname. '彼は何でもよく知っていることから' = 'Because he knows everything well,' which explains why friends call him 'Doctor.' This is correct.

• 1ことに (ことに) means 'to (my) surprise / although' and expresses surprise at a fact. It does not express a reason or basis for being called a nickname.
• 3ことなく (ことなく) means 'without doing ~.' It would mean 'He is called Doctor by friends without knowing everything well,' which is illogical.
• 4ことだから (ことだから) means 'because it is ~ (that person/place),' used when the reason is based on the known character or nature of someone/something. While it can express reason, it is used for predictable behavior of a known person, not for explaining the origin of a nickname based on a fact.

• ことから — from the fact that ~; because (states a basis for a judgment)
• ことに — to my surprise; surprisingly
• ことなく — without doing ~
• ことだから — because it's ~ (known nature of someone/something)

さえ means 'even' and is used with a negative verb to express 'cannot even do ~.' 'プールに入ることさえできなかった' = 'I couldn't even enter the pool,' which contrasts with the later achievement of swimming 50 meters. さえ is correct.

• 1ばかり means 'only / just' and would imply 'I could only enter the pool,' which is the opposite of the intended meaning (could not even enter).
• 2だけ means 'only' and similarly would not convey 'even.' '入ることだけできなかった' is unnatural and does not express the 'even' nuance needed here.
• 3こそ means 'exactly / precisely' and is used for emphasis, not for 'even.' '入ることこそできなかった' would mean 'it was precisely entering the pool that I couldn't do,' which is awkward and not the standard way to express 'even.'

• さえ — even (used to highlight an extreme case, often with negatives)
• ばかり — only, just
• だけ — only
• こそ — exactly, precisely (emphasis)

Option 1 (上) is correct. 法律上（ほうりつじょう）means 'from a legal standpoint' or 'legally.' The suffix 上（じょう）attaches to nouns to mean 'in terms of ~' or 'from the perspective of ~.' The sentence means: 'Publishing someone else's address without permission is not permitted from a legal standpoint.'

• 2上に is a conjunction meaning 'in addition to ~ / not only ~ but also,' which connects two clauses. Here we need a noun suffix, not a conjunction. 法律上に is ungrammatical in this context.
• 3次第（しだい）means 'depending on ~.' 法律次第 would mean 'depending on the law,' which doesn't fit—the sentence states a fact about what is not permitted, not a conditional.
• 4次第に（しだいに）is an adverb meaning 'gradually.' It cannot attach to 法律 in this way and doesn't fit the sentence structure.

• 法律上ほうりつじょう — legally / from a legal standpoint
• 勝手かってに — without permission / arbitrarily
• 公表こうひょう — publication / making public

Option 1 (にかけて) is correct. 〜から〜にかけて means 'from ~ through ~' or 'from ~ to ~,' indicating a span of time or space. The sentence means: 'That bird can be seen in Japan from November through March.' The pattern から...にかけて naturally describes a range spanning multiple months.

• 2をかねて means 'serving also as ~ / doubling as ~' (兼ねて). It is used when one thing serves an additional purpose, e.g., 休養を兼ねて. It does not express a time range.
• 3にそって（に沿って）means 'along ~' or 'in accordance with ~,' used for physical routes or following guidelines. It cannot express a time span.
• 4をめぐって（を巡って）means 'regarding ~ / concerning ~' and is used when discussing a topic or issue around which there is debate or action. It does not express a time range.

• 〜から〜にかけて — from ~ through ~ (spanning a range of time or space)
• 見みられる — can be seen / is observable

Option 2 (消せる) is correct. The pattern V-potential + ものなら means 'if it were possible to ~ (I would).' 消せるものなら消してしまいたい means 'If I could erase it, I would want to erase it completely.' The potential form 消せる（けせる, 'can erase') expresses the hypothetical ability to do something the speaker wishes were possible.

• 1消す is the dictionary form, not the potential form. The pattern ものなら in this usage requires the potential form to express 'if it were possible to.' 消すものなら is ungrammatical for this meaning.
• 3消そうものなら is a different pattern meaning 'if one were to (try to) ~, then (bad consequence).' It implies a warning or threat, not a wish. It does not fit the sentence's desire to erase memories.
• 4消したものなら is ungrammatical. The past tense cannot be used with this ものなら pattern expressing a hypothetical wish.

• 〜ものなら — if it were possible to ~ (used with potential form to express a wish)
• 消けす — to erase / to eliminate
• 消けせる — can erase (potential form of 消す)

Option 2 (一方で) is correct. 〜一方で（いっぽうで）means 'on the one hand ~, on the other hand ~,' expressing two contrasting situations occurring simultaneously. 収入が減る一方で、教育費などの支出は増えていく means 'While income is decreasing, expenses such as education costs are increasing.' The contrast between decreasing income and increasing expenses makes 一方で the perfect fit.

• 1せいで means 'because of ~ (negative cause/blame).' While income decreasing is negative, せいで would need to directly cause the second clause. Here the two clauses are parallel contrasting facts, not a cause-and-result relationship. The structure 〜せいで、〜のだから is also unnatural.
• 3おかげで means 'thanks to ~ (positive cause).' Income decreasing is not something to be grateful for, so this is semantically wrong.
• 4ことで means 'by means of ~ / through doing ~.' Income decreasing is not a means by which expenses increase; they are parallel contrasting trends, so this doesn't fit.

• 〜一方で（〜いっぽうで） — on the other hand / while ~ (expresses contrast between two simultaneous situations)
• 収入しゅうにゅう — income
• 支出ししゅつ — expenditure / expenses
• 節約せつやく — economizing / saving

Option 2 (問わず) is correct. 〜を問わず（とわず）means 'regardless of ~ / irrespective of ~.' 季節を問わず means 'regardless of the season.' The sentence means: 'In this park, you can see beautiful flowers regardless of the season.' This fits perfectly—flowers are available no matter what season it is.

• 1除き（のぞき）means 'excluding ~ / except for ~.' 季節を除き would mean 'excluding the season,' which is nonsensical—you cannot exclude a season from flowers in a park.
• 3こめて（込めて）means 'putting ~ into / with ~ (emotion, effort, etc.).' 季節をこめて does not make sense—seasons are not something you 'put into' flowers.
• 4はじめ（始め）means 'starting with ~ / including ~ and others.' 季節をはじめ would mean 'starting with the season,' which doesn't fit the context of flowers being available in all seasons.

• 〜を問わず（〜をとわず） — regardless of ~ / irrespective of ~
• 季節きせつ — season