N2 Reading · Test 12

Option 1 「1.2メートルくらいだっただろうか」is correct. The writer is recalling what they saw from a bus on the day they arrived in Japan. They are estimating the height of the flags from memory, and だろうか expresses an uncertain recollection/guess: 'Was it about 1.2 meters?' The writer later learns the actual size is 180 cm (縦180センチ), but at this point they are simply guessing from a distance. The structure 高さは～だっただろうか ('the height was about X, I wonder?') naturally conveys this uncertain estimate.

• 2「2メートルくらいだったものなのか」is grammatically unnatural. ものなのか ('was it a thing that...?') does not fit here; the writer is estimating a height they saw, not questioning the nature of an object.
• 3「2メートルくらいだと言われたそうだ」means 'I heard someone said it was about 2 meters.' The writer is estimating from their own visual observation, not reporting hearsay, so this does not fit the context.
• 4「2メートルくらいだと思われていたことだ」uses 思われていた ('it was thought (by people generally)'), implying a long-standing general perception rather than the writer's personal, momentary impression. This is too impersonal and does not match the first-person narrative.

• 高たかさ — height
• だろうか — I wonder if...? (expresses uncertain recollection or conjecture)

Option 3 「どの」is correct. どの旗も means 'every flag' / 'all of the flags.' The pattern どの＋N＋も = 'every N' is used to generalize. The sentence どの旗も色が派手で高さがあり、1本でもよく目立つ means 'Every flag is flashy in color and tall, so even a single one stands out well.' The writer is generalizing about all the flags they have seen around town, so this fits perfectly.

• 1「このように」is an adverb meaning 'in this way / like this.' Placed before 旗, it would read このように旗も… ('in this way, flags too…'), which is grammatically awkward and does not naturally modify 旗 as a quantifier/scope marker.
• 2「あのように」is also an adverb meaning 'in that way.' Like option 1, it cannot naturally precede 旗 to mean 'all flags,' and the sentence structure does not call for an adverbial manner expression here.
• 4「そちらの」means 'that one (near you/over there).' そちらの旗も would mean 'those flags over there too,' which incorrectly limits the scope to specific distant flags rather than generalizing about all the flags the writer has encountered.

• どの～も — every ~ / all ~ (generalizing pattern)
• 派手はで — flashy, showy, gaudy
• 目立めだつ — to stand out, to be conspicuous

Option 1 「使われている」is correct. The sentence says: 旗はどこにでも簡単に立てられるから、街のあちこちで使われている ('Because flags can be easily set up anywhere, they are being used here and there in town'). 使われている is the passive-continuous form (te-iru) describing an ongoing state: the flags are (being) used throughout the town. This matches the writer's observation of flags everywhere.

• 2「使っていく」is active voice meaning 'will continue to use.' This would require a specific subject (who is using them?), and the progressive-toward-the-future nuance does not match the writer's description of an existing state they observe.
• 3「使おう」is the volitional form 'let's use.' This expresses the writer's intention, but the writer is an observer describing what they see, not proposing to use flags themselves.
• 4「使わせる」is the causative form 'make/let someone use.' This would mean someone is forcing others to use flags, which does not match the descriptive context at all.

• 使つかわれている — is being used / are used (passive-continuous, describing an ongoing state)
• あちこち — here and there, various places

Option 4 「調べてみたところ」is correct. This means 'when I tried looking into it / upon investigating.' The preceding paragraph ends with 私はこの旗に強い関心を持った ('I became strongly interested in these flags'). The natural next step is that the writer investigated, and 〜ところ introduces what they discovered: 調べてみたところ、この旗は「のぼり」というそうだ ('When I looked into it, I learned this flag is called nobori'). This creates a smooth cause-and-result connection.

• 1「以上から」means 'from the above / based on what has been said so far.' This is used to draw a conclusion from preceding discussion, but here the writer is introducing new information (the name of the flag) obtained through investigation, not summarizing previous points.
• 2「旗といえば」means 'speaking of flags.' This is a topic-shifting phrase, but the flow here is not a topic shift — the writer has been talking about these flags continuously and is now revealing what they learned through research.
• 3「しかしながら」means 'however.' There is no contrast or contradiction between the writer's interest and learning the flag's name; rather, the interest led to investigation, so a contrastive conjunction is inappropriate.

• 調しらべてみたところ — when I tried investigating / upon looking into it (〜ところ = at the point when / upon doing ~)
• 関心を持つ（かんしんをもつ） — to be interested in, to have interest in

Option 2 「変わらないようだ」is correct. The full sentence: だが、今も、情報を一瞬ではっきりと伝えたいときにのぼりを使うのは変わらないようだ ('However, even now, it seems that using nobori when you want to convey information clearly in an instant has not changed'). The preceding context explains that nobori were historically used in battle to distinguish armies — i.e., to convey information quickly and clearly. Although that military purpose is gone, the fundamental utility of nobori for instant, clear communication remains. 変わらないようだ ('it seems unchanged') captures this observation that the practice persists.

• 1「変わらないこともない」is a double negative meaning 'it's not that it doesn't change' = 'it might change.' This weakens the statement and contradicts the writer's point that the practice continues unchanged.
• 3「変えないでおきたい」means 'I want to leave it unchanged.' This expresses the writer's personal desire, but the sentence is making an observational statement about reality (the practice has not changed), not expressing a wish.
• 4「変えなければならない」means 'must change.' This directly contradicts the context — the writer is impressed by how nobori's characteristics have been applied to advertising, suggesting the practice should continue, not that it must change.

• 変かわらない — unchanged, does not change
• 一瞬いっしゅん — an instant, a moment
• はっきりと — clearly, distinctly