N4 Grammar · Test 1

The sentence means 'Yesterday's homework was small, so it finished in 20 minutes.' The particle で marks the time span within which an action is completed (20分で = 'in 20 minutes'). This fits perfectly with 終わりました ('finished').

• 120分 alone has no particle connecting it to the verb 終わりました. A particle is needed to show the relationship between the time and the action.
• 220分しか requires a negative verb (しか～ない pattern, meaning 'only 20 minutes' with a negative connotation). Since 終わりました is affirmative, this is grammatically impossible.
• 420分を is incorrect. を marks a direct object, but a time duration is not the direct object of 終わる.

• 少すくない — few, little, not enough
• 終おわる — to finish, to end
• 〜で — (time) in, within (a time span)

The sentence means 'This robot can have conversations with people.' The verb 会話する ('to converse') requires the partner to be marked by と ('with'). 人と会話する = 'converse with people.' This is the standard pattern.

• 1や means 'and' (incomplete list: 'things like A and B'). It does not express 'with' and cannot pair with 会話する.
• 2を marks a direct object. 会話する is an intransitive verb that does not take を for the conversation partner.
• 3へ indicates direction ('toward'). You do not 'converse toward a person' — the correct particle is と.

• 会話かいわする — to converse, to have a conversation
• 〜と — with (a person, for doing something together / interacting)

The sentence means 'When my little brother was small, he often got injured and caused our parents to worry.' 心配させました is the causative form of 心配する ('to worry'). In a causative construction, the person who is made to do the action is marked by を. 両親を心配させました = 'caused (my) parents to worry.'

• 1で marks means/method or location of action. It cannot mark the person caused to do something in a causative sentence.
• 3の is a possessive/genitive linker. 両親の心配させました is ungrammatical — it would need a noun after の, not a verb.
• 4や means 'and' (incomplete list). It does not mark the object of a causative verb.

• 心配しんぱいする — to worry
• 心配しんぱいさせる — to cause (someone) to worry (causative)
• 両親りょうしん — parents
• 〜を — (causative) marks the person caused to perform the action

The sentence means 'The bread at the hotel breakfast was so delicious, I ate as many as eight.' The particle も after a quantity emphasizes that the amount is large or surprising: 八つも = 'as many as eight.' This fits the context of eating a lot because it was delicious.

• 2に is used for time, destination, or indirect objects. It does not emphasize quantity and does not fit here.
• 3が is a subject marker. 八つが食べました would mean 'eight (items) ate,' which is nonsensical.
• 4で can mean 'by means of' or 'in (a location),' but it does not convey the sense of 'as many as' that the context (eating a lot because it was delicious) requires.

• 八やっつ — eight (items, using the traditional Japanese counter)
• 〜も — (with a quantity) as many as, as much as — emphasizes a large/surprising amount

The sentence means 'This Japanese dictionary was created by a foreigner 150 years ago.' 作られました is the passive form of 作る ('to make/create'). The phrase によって marks the agent/creator in a passive sentence about creation, discovery, or authorship: 外国人によって作られました = 'was created by a foreigner.'

• 1から means 'from.' While it can mark a source, によって is the correct and idiomatic marker for the agent of a creative passive.
• 2を marks a direct object in active sentences. In a passive sentence, the agent is not marked by を.
• 3について means 'about, regarding.' It has nothing to do with marking the creator/agent of a passive verb.

• 作つくられる — to be made, to be created (passive of 作る)
• 〜によって — by (marks the agent/creator in passive sentences about creation, authorship, etc.)
• 外国人がいこくじん — foreigner

The correct order is 4→1→3→2, making: 先月まで花屋があった場所にできたきっさてんは、りんごのケーキがおいしいです。'The café that opened at the place where there was a flower shop until last month — its apple cake is delicious.' ★ is in the third position, so the answer is 3 (きっさてんは). The key structure is the relative clause 場所にできた modifying きっさてん, which then becomes the topic marked by は. The predicate りんごのケーキがおいしいです describes that café.

• 1できた must come after 場所に (場所にできた 'opened at the place') to form the relative clause modifying きっさてん. Placing it in the ★ position would break this connection.
• 2りんごのケーキが belongs at the end, right before おいしいです, forming the subject of the predicate. It cannot go in the ★ position.
• 4場所に must come right after the relative clause 先月まで花屋があった, forming 場所にできた. It belongs in the first blank, not the ★ position.

• 花屋はなや — flower shop
• 場所ばしょ — place
• きっさてん — café
• できる — to be built/opened (for a shop)

The correct order is 1→3→2→4, making: きのうの夜家に帰ってから、かぎをどこに置いたか覚えていません。'After coming home last night, I don't remember where I put the key.' ★ is in the third position, so the answer is 2 (置いた). The key grammar is the embedded question pattern: どこに置いたか ('where I put') — question word + に + verb (past) + か — which is then followed by 覚えていません.

• 1どこ is the question word and must come first in the embedded question, right after かぎを. It belongs in the first blank.
• 3に is the particle attached to どこ (どこに 'to where'), so it must immediately follow どこ in the second blank.
• 4か turns the question clause into an embedded noun clause (どこに置いたか). It must come after the verb 置いた, in the fourth blank, right before 覚えていません.

• かぎ — key
• 覚おぼえる — to remember
• 置おく — to put/place

The correct order is 1→4→3→2, making: 私はピアノをひくのが好きですが、最近いそがしくてひく時間がありません。'I like playing the piano, but lately I've been busy and don't have time to play.' ★ is in the third position, so the answer is 3 (最近いそがしくて). The sentence has two clauses joined by 好きですが ('I like...but'): the first states the speaker's preference (ピアノをひくのが好き), and the second gives the reason for not being able to play (最近いそがしくてひく時間がありません).

• 1ひくのが must come right after ピアノを, forming ピアノをひくのが好きですが ('I like playing the piano'). It belongs in the first blank.
• 2ひく modifies 時間 (ひく時間 'time to play') and must come right before 時間がありません. It belongs in the fourth blank.
• 4好きですが is the predicate of the first clause and must follow ひくのが. It belongs in the second blank.

• ピアノをひく — to play the piano
• 〜のが好き（〜のがすき） — to like doing ~
• 忙いそがしい — busy

The correct order is 2→4→1→3, making: 私は20さいのたんじょうびにそふがくれたカメラを大切に使っています。'I am using the camera that my grandfather gave me for my 20th birthday carefully.' ★ is in the third position, so the answer is 1 (大切に). The structure is: そふがくれた ('that my grandfather gave') is a relative clause modifying カメラを (the object), then 大切に ('carefully') modifies 使っています ('am using').

• 2くれた must come right after そふが, forming the relative clause そふがくれた ('that my grandfather gave') which modifies カメラを. It belongs in the first blank.
• 3使って is part of 使っています at the end and must come last, right before います. It belongs in the fourth blank.
• 4カメラを is the object of 使っています and must follow the relative clause そふがくれた. It belongs in the second blank.

• 祖父そふ — grandfather
• くれる — to give (to me)
• 大切たいせつに — carefully, with care
• 使つかう — to use

The correct order is 3→2→4→1, making: 見に行ったことがないので、ぜひ行きたいです。'Since I've never gone to see one, I'd definitely like to go.' ★ is in the third position, so the answer is 4 (ので). The structure is: 見に行ったことがない ('have never gone to see') + ので ('because/since') gives the reason, followed by ぜひ行きたいです ('I definitely want to go'). The pattern 〜たことがある/ない expresses experience ('have/have not ever done ~').

• 1ぜひ行きたい is the main clause expressing the speaker's desire and must come at the end, right before です. It belongs in the fourth blank.
• 2ことがない is part of the experience pattern 〜たことがない ('have never done ~') and must follow 見に行った. It belongs in the second blank.
• 3見に行った is the verb phrase that starts the experience clause (見に行ったことがない 'have never gone to see'). It belongs in the first blank.

• 〜たことがある — have experienced doing ~
• ので — because, since (gives reason)
• ぜひ — by all means, definitely