Learning Through Lyrics: Part 9

Line Nine

trust me この想いほどけないから                my dear 抱えた荷物

Translation

Trust me / these feelings will never come apart       my dear / that baggage you carried

Vocabulary & Grammar Notes

Kono

Normally, this would correspond to “this.” However, if what follows is a plural, we would logically use “these.”

Omoi

There are two common words that use “omoi.” One is the adjective form for “heavy”; the other is the noun for “thought/ thoughts.” This is the latter case. The plural works better here. Japanese: おもい、想い

Note that the kanji here may work with “omoi,” but unlike 思い, this is not for just thinking; it is for concepts, ideas, etc. However, this is too subtle to attempt to translate. “These thoughts” leaves considerable wiggle room, and that is enough.

Hodokenai kara

The verb “hodokeru” means “to come untied, to come apart.” In other words, to unravel. Using “nai” here turns it into a non-past negative form. Japanese: ほどけない, 解けない

“Kara” is used here to mean, arising due to the fact that the previous is true… …or, “so.” (The latter is much simpler, yes?)

These feelings will never come apart, so…

Kakaeta Nimotsu

Kakaeru is Japanese for “To Carry.” So, this is the simple past tense of carry, i.e. “carried.” Japanese: かえた、換えた

Nimotsu is a noun meaning, put simply, baggage. As in English, it can easily be used in a figurative manner. Japanese: にもつ、荷物

Further Localization

Since there’s more coming, I wanted to use the implied-but-not-said “that” for “that baggage” in the second line.

J Sensei

About J Sensei

Blogger, writer, linguist, former Japanese> English translator, rusty in French, experienced in Japanese, fluent English native. Writing for Technorati.com and various blogs. Skype: jeremiah.bourque (messages always welcome). E-mail: [email protected]
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