A Lesson on Limiting Conditions (限定) for 中・上級 Learners

[KyleGoetz]

Same book, same translator, and some awesome help from masaegu and Nyororin!

限定 Limiting Conditions

２級
〜にかぎり
〜に限って
〜かぎり（は）
〜かぎりでは
１級
〜ただ〜のみ
〜ならでは
〜をおいて

===〜に限り===
When you want to say something is only done on certain special conditions.

Usage: Noun＋に限り

Examples:
電話取りつぎは８時まで。ただし、急を要する場合に限 り、１１時まで受け付ける。
I will take phone calls until 8. However, if the case is urgent, I will accept them until 11.

朝９時までにご来店の方に限り、コーヒーのサービスが あります。
We have free coffee, but only for those who come to the store before nine in the morning.

===〜に限って===
When you want to say "Only at a particular time does a certain thing especially happen."
Use it when you want to say something unsatisfying occurs and is not pleasing. (see first example)
Also used when making an inference about a person whom you regard with a special trust or expectation and saying 'that s/he will be the last person to do an undesirable or disagreeable thing. (see second example)

Examples:
ハイキングに行こうという日に限って雨が降る。わたし はいつも運が悪いなあ。
Rain falls on days I say we should go hiking. I always have bad luck.

あの先生に限ってそんな叱り方はしないと思う。
I don't think that teacher would employ that method of scolding.

===〜かぎり（は）===
"As long as ~ is the case"

Usage RTSSG＋かぎり（は）

Examples:
体が丈夫なかぎり、思い切り社会活動をしたいものだ。
So long as my body is resilient, I want to do as many social activities as I can.

日本ごこの憲法を守っているかぎりは、平和が維持され ると考えていいだろうか。
Isn't it safe to think that, so long as Japan defends its constitution, peace will be maintained.

===〜かぎりでは===
"If you restrict the scope to ~"

Usage: dictionary form / ta-form / nounの　＋かぎりでは

Examples:
この売り上げ状況のグラフをみるかぎりでは、我が社の 製品の売れ行きは順調だ。
As far as I can tell from the graph of sales conditions, demand for our company's products is satisfactory.

今回の調査のかぎりでは、この問題に関する外国の資料 はあまりないようだ。
Limited to this investigation, it appears there is not much data on foreign countries regarding this problem.

===ただ〜のみ===
"There is only ~"

Examples:
マラソン当日の天気、選手にとってはただそれのみが心 配だ。
Weather on the day of the marathon is the only concern for the participants/runners/players.

この問題は先進諸国ではすでに解決済みで、ただ日本の みが大幅に立ち遅れていたのだ。
Regarding this problem, in the advanced countries it has already been solved, and only Japan lags fell behind.

===〜ならでは===
Used to say you think something is only possible in a certain situation, and without that situation, it's not possible.
Note: In lieu of using 見られない／できない／etc. you can just use の as seen in an example below.

Usage: Noun ＋ならでは

Examples:
この祭りは京都ならではの光景です。
This festival is sight [to behold] only in Kyoto.

この絵には子供ならでは表せない無邪気さがある。
There is an innocence in this picture that only a child could express.

===〜をおいて===
When you want to say "outside of a circumstance, it does not exist."
You can structure this as 〜をおいて〜ない.

Usage: Noun＋において

こんないやなことを引き受ける人は彼をおいて誰もいな い。
There is no one but him who would undertake such an unpleasant task.

この仕事をやれる人はあなたをおいて外にいないと思い ます。
I think there is no one but you who could do this job.

[masaegu]

Originally Posted by KyleGoetz

朝９時までにご来店の方に限り、コーヒーのサービスが あります。
We have coffee service until 9 in the morning, limited to in-store pickup.

Correct if the English means that it is free.

日本ごこの憲法を守っているかぎりは、平和が維持され ると考えていいだろうか。
Isn't it safe to think that, so long as Japan defends its constitution, peace will be maintained.

「日本ご」？

この売り上げ状況のグラフをみるかぎりでは、我が社の 製品の売れ行きは順調だ。
If you look only at the graph of sales conditions, demand for our country's products is satisfactory.

"our country's"?

マラソン当日の天気、選手にとってはただそれのみが心 配だ。
According to the professional, the weather on the day of the marathon is the only concern.

"According to"?
"the professional"?

この絵には子供ならでは表せない無邪気さがある。
There is an innocence where you cannot reveal this image to a child.

?????? Not sure if you got the structure right.

Hint: The 無邪気 is in the 絵 and that is something only kids can express.

[KyleGoetz]

Originally Posted by masaegu

Correct if the English means that it is free.

I did not know what "coffee service" meant, so thank you for that note.

(pointing out a series of really sloppy errors on my part)

Those were really lazy mistakes on my part. "Our company," 日本 not 日本語, and "Weather on the day of the marathon is the only concern for the participants/runners/players." I always instinctively translate にとって as "according to" and I really have no idea why. It's been a problem of mine for years, and I should have corrected it a long time ago.

?????? Not sure if you got the structure right.

Hint: The 無邪気 is in the 絵 and that is something only kids can express.

"There is an innocence in this picture that only a child could express."??

Thank you!

[Nyororin]

Originally Posted by KyleGoetz

朝９時までにご来店の方に限り、コーヒーのサービスが あります。
We have coffee service until 9 in the morning, limited to in-store pickup.

I`m not a native speaker, but I would understand this sentence as meaning something a bit different...
Not "limited to in-store pickup" but "limited to those who come before 9 AM".
I don`t really see anything that implies that there is anything having to do with pickup. Just that they will give free coffee to those who come before 9 AM.

Maybe if there was some other context I could see the "pickup" bit, but that alone doesn`t cover it.

ETA----

この売り上げ状況のグラフをみるかぎりでは、我が社の 製品の売れ行きは順調だ。
If you look only at the graph of sales conditions, demand for our country's products is satisfactory.

Ignoring what Masaegu commented on, this isn`t entirely wrong, I suppose... But the translation doesn`t sit well with me.
みるかぎり sort of carries the meaning of "as far as I can tell from". "look only at" implies (to me) that looking elsewhere would give a different result. みるかぎり doesn`t imply that.

As I`m not a native speaker, I kind of cringe away from commenting on these translations... But if my comments are also helpful, I`ll give them. At the very least, I`m a professional translator so hope that I`m right.

[KyleGoetz]

Originally Posted by Nyororin

I`m not a native speaker, but I would understand this sentence as meaning something a bit different...
Not "limited to in-store pickup" but "limited to those who come before 9 AM".
I don`t really see anything that implies that there is anything having to do with pickup. Just that they will give free coffee to those who come before 9 AM.

Thank you. I recognized 来店 meant "come to the store," so I guessed "in-store pickup." I didn't know コーヒーサービス meant "free coffee," so the only way I could make sense of the sentence was to read it as "coffee service (read: ordering coffee) is only for people who come to the store."

I will make the appropriate adjustments.

Ignoring what Masaegu commented on, this isn`t entirely wrong, I suppose... But the translation doesn`t sit well with me.
みるかぎり sort of carries the meaning of "as far as I can tell from". "look only at" implies (to me) that looking elsewhere would give a different result. みるかぎり doesn`t imply that.

That's a good translation. I didn't realize it meant "as far as I can tell." I translated it too literally, I guess.

I`m a professional translator so hope that I`m right.

I had not realized that. Cool.