Lesson 13
Possibility, Impossibility, Compulsion
- 1 〜かねる ~kaneru cannot (a polite refusal) The polite way to tell a customer 'I can't' in offices, hotels and call centres — わかりかねます (I'm not in a position to say).
- 2 〜かねない ~kanenai might well (something bad) A warning that 'this could well end badly' — 事故を起こしかねない (you could well cause an accident).
- 3 〜ようがない ~yō ga nai there is no way to ~ I would if I could, but there is simply no way — 連絡しようがない・どうしようもない.
- 4 〜得る ~uru (~eru) can / possible ／ cannot / impossible 'It is possible / it is impossible' — a formal written form; in speech, あり得ない！
- 5 〜っこない ~kkonai no way (can) ~ (spoken) 'No way, not a chance' between friends — the casual cousin of わけがない.
- 6 〜どころではない ~dokoro de wa nai this is no time / no situation for ~ 'Karaoke? This is no time for that!' — when there is no time, money or health to spare.
- 7 〜ざるを得ない ~zaru o enai have no choice but to (reluctantly) Don't want to, but circumstances force it — the formal, written しかない.
Lesson check
All 7 forms of this lesson together — pick the right one from its look-alikes, the way the exam does. 6/8 completes the lesson.
🔒
「申し訳ありませんが、その件は私ではお答え＿。」(reply to a customer) — fill the blank.
💡 Hint:A polite refusal to a customer: 'my position does not allow it'.
Vます + かねる = the formal, polite 'cannot'. できっこない is blunt friend-talk and rude to a customer; しざる is not even the right form (it must be せざる).
「寝不足のまま運転したら、事故を起こし＿よ。」— fill the blank.
💡 Hint:〜たら + a warning that something bad 'might well' happen.
Vます + かねない = a bad outcome might well happen (a warning). かねる means 'cannot' — it looks related but the meaning is the opposite; っこない and 得ない say 'impossible'.
「携帯をなくしてしまって、連絡＿んだ。」— which says 'there was no way to'?
💡 Hint:I wanted to, but there was simply no means.
Vます + ようがない = there is no means to do it (not my fault). しかねる is a polite refusal to a customer, not an excuse to a friend.
「日本では大きな地震はいつでも起こり＿。」(news) — fill the blank.
💡 Hint:Formal written 'it is possible'.
Vます + 得る = it is possible in the world (news, reports). 起こりかねる would mean 'cannot happen' (a polite refusal) — the opposite meaning here.
「人が足りないので、日曜日も出勤＿。」— which says 'forced to, reluctantly'?
💡 Hint:Circumstances leave no choice — する becomes せざる.
する → せざるを得ない = have no choice but to (reluctantly). 出勤しようがない would mean 'there is no way to go to work' — it does not fit 人が足りない.
Which sentence is unnatural?
💡 Hint:Who can you use っこない with?
っこない is for friends, family and yourself — rude to a customer even with です; use できかねます or あり得ません there. 買えっこない (to a friend) is fine.
Which sentence is unnatural?
💡 Hint:What kind of verb does ざるを得ない take?
ざるを得ない takes only volitional actions (諦める, 出勤する) — not natural events like 雨が降る. 起こり得る and 倒産しかねない are both fine.
A friend asks 「今夜カラオケ行かない？」but your report is due tomorrow. To say 'this is no time for that', which form?
💡 Hint:The hurried feeling of 'where is the time to even think of that?'
N + どころじゃない = the situation leaves no room for it. 行きようがない would mean 'no means to go', and 行きかねる is a polite refusal for customers, not friends.
Your score: /8