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kirakira (Offline)
己所不欲勿施於人
 
Posts: 350
Join Date: Jan 2009
03-27-2009, 04:51 AM

Quote:
Originally Posted by SHAD0W View Post
この携帯はどうやって使うことが分からない
I don't know how to use this cell phone.

I think this is way above you tho.. you need some structure to what you study.
Seriously Shad0w, let's be a bit more humble now shall we especially when you got it wrong as well.

この携帯はどうやって使うかわからない。is the gramatically sound version of what you are trying to say although it would be much more natural and less wordy so say
この携帯の使い方がわからない。

こと by itself, as far as I know, has only one grammatic function and that's to turn a phrase/clause into a noun-like state, so you can attach other verbs to it and/or treat the whole previous clause as a noun. (Yes I know it has many many many other meanings but i don't consider them to be grammar)

あの人は日本に来ることが信じられない。
I can't believe that guy is coming to Japan.

こと is the glue that joins あの人は日本に来る and 信じられない.
You can't say あの人は日本に来るが信じられない because が as a subject marker must be preceded by a noun, and the only way to do that is to add ことto the clause to make the whole thing a noun (の also has this function but more restricted).

Last edited by kirakira : 03-27-2009 at 04:58 AM.
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