Used when you present a fact in a way that is convenient for you by changing it, as in 「犯行時間に一緒に飲んでいたことにしてくれ」 ("Say that we were drinking together at the time of the crime").
Connection Vた/Vなかった + ことにする
Examples
私が日本にいる間に、家族がドイツへ旅行に行ったなんて、聞かなかったことにしたいなあ。
While I was in Japan, my family went on a trip to Germany without me — I'd like to pretend I never heard that.
ごめん!財布落としちゃって…。食事をおごる話はなかったことにしてくれる?
Sorry! I lost my wallet... Could we just forget about my offer to treat you to a meal?
友達にもらった写真を自分で撮ったことにして、コンテストに応募して入賞しちゃった人がいたらしいよ。
Apparently someone passed off a photo a friend had given them as their own shot, entered it in a contest, and even won a prize.
A: The report is due tomorrow and I totally forgot about it. What am I going to do! I guess I'll just copy and paste what I find online and say I wrote it myself. B: Even if you do that, you'll definitely get found out right away.
What people say in everyday speech
〜ことにしよう/なかったことにして
「〜ことにする」is also commonly used in everyday speech (friends do say things like 「なかったことにして」), but in a situation like the one in the text, where a superior formally announces 「昇進の話はなかったことにする」, it has an official, matter-of-fact tone. When friends chat and mean something similar, they put it more casually, for example 「あの話、なかったことにしよう」, which sounds lighter and lacks the formal feel of something being announced or decided for you.
「〜つもり」is used when you want to say "the person themselves believes ...", regardless of what others think or what the facts are.
Connection Vる/Vた/Vている/Nの + つもり
Examples
説明書通りにやっているつもりなのに、どうしてもうまくできない。
Even though I think I'm following the instructions, I just can't get it to work.
会議中にちょっとささやいたつもりが、みんなに聞こえてしまって、恥ずかしかったよ。
I meant to whisper during the meeting, but everyone heard me, and I was so embarrassed.
あの人は小説家のつもりらしいけど、書いた小説が出版されたという話を聞いたことがない。
That person seems to think of himself as a novelist, but I've never heard of any novel he wrote being published.
What people say in everyday speech
〜つもりだった
「〜つもりだった」is already a perfectly natural everyday expression. Friends often say things like 「がんばったつもりだったんだけどな」, so there is no need to swap it for anything else. This grammar point is widely used in both written and spoken Japanese.
「〜てならない」is used to say "extremely ...". It is used together with words that express emotion, such as 「残念・不安・心配・つらい・くやしい」. It is not used with words that express evaluation, such as 「きれい・下手」.
Connection Vて/いA(去い)くて/なAで + ならない
Examples
私のように年をとってくると、ふるさとの山々が懐かしく思い出されてならないんですよ。
Now that I've gotten older like this, I find myself longing for the mountains of my hometown.
柔道を始めたのは、子どものころいつもけんかで兄に負けるのが、くやしくてならなかったからです。
I started judo because I was always beaten by my older brother in fights as a child, and I was so frustrated.
昔は人前で話すのが嫌でならなかったんですが、最近はあまり抵抗を感じなくなりました。
I used to hate speaking in front of people more than anything, but recently I don't feel much resistance to it anymore.
日本人がどうしてあんなに謝るのか不思議でならないという外国人は多い。
Many foreigners find it deeply puzzling why Japanese people apologize so much.
What people say in everyday speech
〜てしょうがない/〜てたまらない
「〜てならない」is a somewhat literary, written way of expressing feelings, often seen in novel monologues and lyrical writing. To express equally strong feelings in everyday speech, 「〜てしょうがない」or「〜てたまらない」is more common, as in 「毎日つらくてしょうがなかった」and「つらくてたまらなかった」. These are what friends actually blurt out when venting, whereas 「てならない」sounds more like a written monologue.
A: Just getting home now? We're in the same boat — a one-and-a-half-hour commute is rough, isn't it. B: It sure is. If I could afford it, I'd like to buy an apartment near the office...
不老不死の願いがかなうものなら、私はいくらでも金を出す。
If my wish for eternal life could come true, I'd pay any amount of money.
What people say in everyday speech
〜もんなら
The grammar explanation in the text already says 「会話では「もんなら」になる」, which means 「〜ものなら」is the written or more formal version of 「〜もんなら」. In everyday speech it is almost always 「もんなら」, as in 「できるもんなら違う世界に行きたいよ」. This is the typical colloquial sound change of の to ん, and the more casual the setting, the more likely 「もんなら」is used.
I agonized over whether to wake up the department head who had dozed off during the meeting, and in the end I didn't wake him. What should I have done?
両親は姉に就職試験の結果を聞こうか聞くまいか迷っているようだ。
My parents seem to be wavering over whether to ask my older sister about the result of her job-hunting exam.
What people say in everyday speech
〜かどうか迷う/〜しようかな、どうしようかな
「〜か〜まいか」is a written expression of dilemma with a literary flavor. Its neat structure (the verb appears twice, once affirmative and once negative) is common in the psychological descriptions of novels. Everyday speech is looser and more casual: you simply say 「行こうかどうしようか迷った」, or mutter to yourself 「行こうかな、どうしようかな」, without the somewhat stiff negative volitional form of 「まいか」.
「〜末…」is used to say "after doing ~ for a long time (a certain result came about in the end)". It can also be used when it did not actually take long, as long as it felt long to the speaker.
Connection Vた/Nの + 末(に)
Examples
家族ともよく話し合った末、今年度限りで引退することに決めました。
After talking it over thoroughly with my family, I decided to retire at the end of this fiscal year.
この商店街で30年がんばってきましたが、悩んだ末に店を閉めることにしました。
I've stuck it out in this shopping street for 30 years, but after much agonizing, I decided to close my shop.
すぐに天職と思える仕事につける人もいるが、何回かの転職の末、やりがいのある仕事を見つける人もいる。
Some people land a job they immediately feel is their true calling, while others find a rewarding job only after changing jobs several times.
I consulted everyone about which company's computer would be best, and after agonizing at great length, I ended up deciding to buy one from the same manufacturer as the one I'm using now.
What people say in everyday speech
〜した後で/さんざん〜して、最後は
「〜末に」is a closing expression common in novels and news reports, meaning "after many twists and turns, finally...", and it has a summarizing, written-language feel. In everyday speech, the same idea is expressed in a wordier but more natural way, for example 「さんざん迷って、最後はその家に近づいていった」, or simply 「迷った後で」, without the decisive, written-style finality of 「末に」.
Under these conditions, the merger proposal from Suzuki Trading is hard to accept.
信じがたいことだが、あのおとなしい高橋さんが上司の命令に逆らったというのは事実らしい。
It is hard to believe, but it seems to be true that the quiet Mr. Takahashi defied his superior's order.
脱サラして会社を始めてもう3年が過ぎたが、まだ経営が安定しているとは言いがたい状況だ。
Three years have passed since I left my salaried job and started my own company, but it can hardly be said that the business is stable yet.
いい記録を出すために薬物を使用するのは、フェアプレイの精神に反する許しがたい行為だ。
Using drugs to post good results is an unforgivable act that goes against the spirit of fair play.
What people say in everyday speech
〜にくい/〜できない
「〜がたい」has a strong flavor of old literary Japanese. Expressions like 「信じがたい」and 「許しがたい」are common in commentary, court rulings, and formal statements, and are almost never said in everyday speech. People would say 「許せない」or 「信じられない」instead, as in 「あんなことする奴、絶対許せない」, which is much more direct and emotional than 「許しがたい」, the kind of thing real people say when arguing or angry.
「〜もかまわず…」is used to say "to ignore something one would normally care about and do ...". It is often used critically.
Connection N + もかまわず
Examples
住民の迷惑もかまわず、夜中にバイクで走りまわるのはやめてほしい。
I wish people would stop riding their motorbikes around at night with no regard for the nuisance to residents.
電車の中で人目もかまわず、お化粧するのはどうかと私は思う。
I think it's a bit much to put on makeup on the train without caring who sees you.
彼女は服が汚れるのもかまわず、泥だらけの子犬を抱き上げた。
Not caring whether her clothes would get dirty, she scooped up the puppy that was covered in mud.
ぼくたちは虫に刺されるのもかまわず、森の中で毎日遊んでいた。
Heedless of getting bitten by insects, we played in the forest every day.
最近このあたりは観光客が増え、ところかまわずごみを捨てる人もいるので掃除が大変だ。
Recently the number of tourists around here has increased, and some people throw trash anywhere without caring where, so cleaning up is a real struggle.
What people say in everyday speech
〜も気にしないで/〜のことは気にせず
「〜もかまわず」is a written phrase often used in novels to describe a character acting recklessly. In everyday speech, people would put it more plainly, such as 「男の人が止めるのも気にしないで」, or simply 「気にせず殴った」. 「もかまわず」sounds like the wording of an onlooker narrating or of someone writing, not what the person involved would say in conversation.
「〜あまり…」is used to say "being extremely ~ (resulting in ...)". It is often used when the result is unfavorable.
Connection Vる/なAな/Nの + あまり
Examples
弟の病気を心配するあまり母は食欲がなくなり、すっかりやせてしまった。
My mother worried so much about my younger brother's illness that she lost her appetite and got very thin.
彼は仕事熱心なあまり、土日も休もうとしないので、周囲の人を心配させている。
He is so absorbed in his work that he won't take even weekends off, which worries the people around him.
恋人を亡くした彼女は悲しみのあまり部屋に閉じこもってしまった。
She was so overcome with grief at losing her lover that she shut herself up in her room.
電車の中で足を踏まれて、痛さのあまり声も出なかった。
Someone stepped on my foot on the train, and it hurt so much that I couldn't even make a sound.
What people say in everyday speech
〜すぎて/あまりに〜で
「〜あまり」is a written expression often used in the psychological descriptions of novels. In everyday speech, people more often say 「恥ずかしすぎて逃げ出したくなった」, using 「〜すぎて」instead, or 「あまりに恥ずかしくて」. Both are more natural and conversational than the nominalized 「恥ずかしさのあまり」structure with 「のあまり」.
Used when you pile up positive words to say "there are many good points", or pile up negative words to say "there are many bad points". It can also mean "there are various cases", as in 「家で食べる日もあれば外で食べる日もある」 ("Some days I eat at home, and some days I eat out").
Connection N + も + [Vば/いA(去い)ければ/なAなら] + N + も
Examples
今度できたスーパーは品数も多ければ値段も安いので、大人気だ。
The new supermarket that just opened has both a wide selection and low prices, so it is very popular.
私は料理も下手なら掃除も苦手で、家事で得意なものは何もないんです。
I'm bad at cooking and also poor at cleaning, so there's not a single household chore I'm good at.
このバスツアーは4,980円で、昼食の食べ放題もあればお土産もついていますから、たいへんお得です。
This bus tour costs only 4,980 yen, and it includes an all-you-can-eat lunch as well as a souvenir, so it's a great deal.
長い人生、いいときもあれば悪いときもあるよ。
Life is long; there are good times and there are bad times.
5月は気温が25度以上になる日もあれば、20度以下で肌寒い日もある。
In May, there are days when the temperature goes above 25 degrees, and days when it is below 20 and a bit chilly.
What people say in everyday speech
〜も〜も(「ば」を省略)
The parallel structure 「Nも+Vば+Nも」 has a slightly rhetorical feel and is common in the summarizing sentences of essays. In casual speech people usually drop the 「〜ば」 and simply list the two things with 「も〜も」, for example 「荷物運びもするし、切符も売る」 or 「荷物も運ぶし切符も売るし、大変だよ」. The 「〜ば」 version sounds more like written narration than everyday chat.
He went into the game without being able to practice as he wanted because of an injury, yet he fought to the very end. I think Mr. Yamakawa did very well.
父が祖父から受け継ぎ、守りぬいたこの店を、これからはぼくがもっと大きく育てていくつもりだ。
This shop, which my father inherited from my grandfather and defended to the end, I intend to grow even bigger from now on.
北国の長い冬を耐えぬいた植物が芽を出すと、春の訪れを感じる。
When plants that have endured the long winter of the north sprout buds, you can feel spring arriving.