Claiming N:
Here
Transcription:
白鳥先生『には』一言も言い返さなかった……
Since a verb is so important in the meaning of a sentence, I will start with the verb this time.
返さなかった:
Again I recognise the past negative, this time of the verb 返す.
返す has a lot of meanings (well by my accounts anyway):
Godan verb with 〜su ending, transitive verb
ⓐ to return (something), to restore, to put back (esp. 返す, see also: かえす)
ⓑ to turn over, to turn upside down, to overturn
ⓒ to pay back, to retaliate, to reciprocate (esp. 返す)
ⓓ to respond (with), to retort, to reply, to say back
auxiliary verb, Godan verb with `su’ ending
ⓔ to do … back (e.g. speak back, throw back) (after the -masu stem of a verb)
ⓕ to do again, to do repeatedly (after the -masu stem of a verb)
Eureka!
I didn’t even retort one word to 白鳥先生.
Yes!! Victory dance!