N2 Reading · Test 1

The sentence asks 'Why did this kind of result come about?' (なぜこのような結果になったのでしょうか). The preceding sentence just stated the survey result—Japan's house lifespan is only ~30 years vs. 77 (UK) and 55 (US). なぜ (why) + このような (this kind of) correctly refers to the result just mentioned and asks for its cause, which the following paragraphs provide.

• 2なぜあような uses あのような ('that kind of'), which refers to something distant in time/space or previously known, not the result just stated. The result was mentioned in the immediately preceding sentence, so このような is appropriate.
• 3果してどのような asks 'what kind of result,' but the sentence already has なぜ embedded—wait, actually this option says どのような ('what kind'), which would ask 'what kind of result did it become,' not 'why.' The paragraph is asking for the cause (why), not describing the type.
• 4はたしてそのような means 'that kind of' and doesn't pair with なぜ to form a proper question. はたして is an adverb meaning 'really/truly' and そのような refers to something already identified, which doesn't fit the question structure here.

• なぜ — why
• このような — this kind of, such (referring to something just mentioned)
• あのような — that kind of (referring to something distant)
• 果はたして — really, truly (used in questions expressing doubt or curiosity)
• 寿命じゅみょう — lifespan

建て替えられていった is passive voice (houses were rebuilt) + ていく (action progressing outward/forward over time) + past tense. The sentence means 'the houses up to then were rebuilt one after another.' The passive is needed because houses don't rebuild themselves—people rebuild them. ていく past (ていった) shows a process that unfolded over time, fitting the historical narrative about post-war houses being replaced as the economy grew.

• 1建て替えていく is active voice, meaning the houses themselves are doing the rebuilding, which makes no sense—houses don't rebuild themselves. It should be passive.
• 2建て替えさせていた is causative past ('was making/letting someone rebuild'), which doesn't fit. The subject それまでの家 is the thing being rebuilt, not the one causing the rebuilding.
• 3建て替えさせられている is passive-causative in the present tense, meaning 'is being made to rebuild.' This is both the wrong voice (causative-passive implies coercion) and wrong tense (present, but the context is past).

• 建て替える（たてかえる） — to rebuild, to tear down and rebuild
• 次々つぎつぎに — one after another, successively
• 〜ていく — indicates a process continuing/progressing forward over time

考えられます is the potential/passive form of 考える ('to think/consider'). 原因として考えられます means 'can be considered as a cause,' which fits perfectly: 'Also, Japanese people's view on housing can also be considered as a cause.' This matches the pattern used in the first paragraph (原因の一つに...あるようです) and introduces the second cause.

• 1思われます ('is thought') is grammatically possible but less natural with 原因として. The pattern 原因として考えられます ('can be considered as a cause') is a standard formal expression. 思われます would mean 'is thought (by people generally),' which is less precise.
• 2わかります means 'is understood / can be understood,' which doesn't collocate well with 原因として. You don't say a cause 'is understood as a cause'—you say it 'can be considered' a cause.
• 4調べられます means 'can be investigated,' which makes no sense here. The housing view isn't being investigated as a cause; it is being identified as one.

• 原因げんいん — cause, reason
• 住宅観じゅうたくかん — view/perspective on housing
• 考かんがえられます — can be considered, is thought (potential/passive of 考える)
• 思おもわれます — is thought, is considered (spontaneous/passive of 思う)

つまり means 'in other words' or 'to sum up.' The sentence after it summarizes the two causes discussed in the preceding paragraphs (post-war housing conditions and Japanese housing views) into one conclusion: 'In short, because houses in Japan are often rebuilt, the survey result showed a short average lifespan.' つまり correctly signals this summary/conclusion.

• 1ところで means 'by the way' and signals a topic change. This sentence is not changing topics—it's summarizing the preceding discussion, so ところで is wrong.
• 3なぜなら means 'because' and introduces a reason following a statement. Here, the sentence itself IS the conclusion, not a reason for something stated before. Using なぜなら would require a preceding statement that this sentence explains.
• 4もちろん means 'of course' and expresses certainty about something obvious. It doesn't fit as a summary connector. The sentence is drawing a conclusion from the analysis, not stating something obvious.

• つまり — in other words, to sum up, that is to say
• ところで — by the way (topic change)
• なぜなら — because (introduces a reason)
• もちろん — of course, naturally

家を建ててますか (colloquial for 家を建てていますか) means 'are you building (a house)?' The full sentence reads: 'If you were to build a house in Japan for yourself, for your family... what kind of house are you building?' The なら conditional sets up the hypothetical, and the question asks the reader what kind of house they would build, circling back to the opening question (どんな家がいいですか). Among the options, this is the only one that asks about building a house in a present/future-oriented way that matches the なら conditional.

• 1家を建てたのですか is past tense ('did you build a house?'), which conflicts with the hypothetical なら ('if you were to build'). The question is about a future/conditional scenario, not asking about a past action.
• 2家に住めたのですか is past potential ('were you able to live in a house?'), which doesn't match the context at all. The article is about building houses, not about whether someone was able to live in one.
• 4家に住めますか means 'can you live in a house?' This asks about living, not building. The なら clause says 家を建てるなら ('if you build a house'), so the question should be about what kind of house you build, not whether you can live in one.

• 建たてる — to build (a building/house)
• 住すめる — can live (potential form of 住む)
• 〜なら — if (conditional, based on someone's action/intention)