👻 Week 6 10分でよめるこわい話・10 minute Scary Stories (Absolute Beginner Book Club)

[nospimi99]

Reading this has been an interesting experience. I figured a children’s book would be super easy with more simple grammar, but then the other issue comes forth with it primarily being Kana. I always knew the value of Kanji over Kana, but man trying to read something that’s all Kana is a nightmare. I’m not only trying to decipher what is the kana version of a Kanji versus something being a particle or conjugation of a Kanji, but then once I decide something is a Kana version of a Kanji I have to figure out WHAT Kanji it is. I see the value in doing this since when listening it’s the same thing, no Kanji to help give you info just the sounds so doing this will help with that. But MAN is it difficult.

Anyway, I’m needing a bit of help with the second sentence of the chapter.

子どもたちもカレンのことが大すきで、カレンのまわりはいつも、にぎやかなわらいごえでみたされていました。

子どもたちも

Apprently this means children since 子 is Kanji for Child, ども is the kana version of 供 which means companion or follower and together 子供 means children, but then たち is a pluralizing ender? So like, why is it written like that? Why is it 子どもたち instead of just 子ども or 子たち?

ことが

I have no idea what this is doing in the sentence. こと I assume is 事 and が is there to be the subject marking particle, but I have no idea what it does in the sentence. カレンの is right before it so I would assume it’s meant to be possessive to “Karen’s Thing” but that doesn’t make any sense?

いつも

I assume this is just 何時も which means always?

にぎやかな

I’m guessing this is meant to be 賑やか which means bustling, crowded, lively, and the な is meant to connect it to the next kana?

みたされて

I think this is 満たす in kana form? Which means to satisfy/fulfill/meet demands. But is this the passive conjugation of the verb which is then turned into the て form? So 満たす > 満たされる > 満たされて? But even if that is how we got that final result, I still don’t know what this form does to the sentence? The nuances and impact it has is lost to me.

いました

This is the polite past tense of some verb, but I have no idea what it is. It could be 居る, 要る, 炒る, 射る, 入る, 鋳る, 没る, 癒る, 率る, 沃る. Obviously some fit better than others but I don’t know which it is.

I’m gonna go cry because I didn’t realize that this sentence I translated isn’t the second sentence from this week’s reading but the second to last sentence from last weeks Guess I’ll post this in last week’s discussion lol

[CherryApple]

@nospimi99

I’m guessing this is meant to be 賑やか which means bustling, crowded, lively, and the な is meant to connect it to the next kana?

It’s a na-adjective. The na is used between the adjectives and the following noun.

[CherryApple]

@nospimi99

This is the polite past tense of some verb, but I have no idea what it is. It could be 居る, 要る, 炒る, 射る, 入る, 鋳る, 没る, 癒る, 率る, 沃る. Obviously some fit better than others but I don’t know which it is.

It’s Probably いる to be. The other Version of ある.
いる is used for people (living Things). ある for non-living Things.

[CherryApple]

@nospimi99

Apprently this means children since 子 is Kanji for Child, ども is the kana version of 供 which means companion or follower and together 子供 means children, but then たち is a pluralizing ender? So like, why is it written like that? Why is it 子どもたち instead of just 子ども or 子たち?

It’s used when someone wants to make Sure, that you understand that He is talking about more than Just one Person.

あなたたち is used If you mean someone and His whole group. Or the Name + たち.

わたしたち is used for your own group.

[HopeWaterfall]

子どもたちも

I’m pretty sure 子ども is not necessarily plural. In fact, the main meaning on Wanikani is child, not children. Same on Jisho, they differentiate 子ども as child/children and 子どもたち as children specifically.

のことが

I’m pretty sure this usage is the one described in this Tofugu article, to talk about someone/something as a whole entity. Relating that to the example Tofugu gives, it’s specifying that the children don’t just like Karen, they like everything about her.

[CherryApple]

Page 47 Title

ひっこしのよる
あたらしい いえに ひっこして きた よるに、おきた こととは……？

Summary

Moving night
They we’re moving into the new House. During the night an incident happened.

How do I connect These sentences?
What does こととは mean?
And why is there a “?”; is こととは a particle for questions?

Page 47 Sentence 1

それは、にねんせいの きたの ことです。

Summary

Then, when she was a second year Student, there was an incident.

Page 47 Sentence 2

わたしたちは、あたらしい いえが できるまでの あいだだけ、かりる ことに なりました。

Summary

We Had decided to rent until the new House was Just built.

Page 47 Sentence 3

けれど、わたしたちを でむかえたのは、まちは ずれの ペンキの はげた、ふるめかしい たてもの だったのです。

Summary

But we meet / greet …
Outskirts of a town …
Paint came Off …
Time worn building …

That’s all I understood.

[soggyboy]

page 47 title

@CherryApple

ひっこしのよる
あたらしい いえに ひっこして きた よるに、おきた こととは……？

Moving night
They we’re moving into the new House. During the night an incident happened.

How do I connect These sentences?
What does こととは mean?
And why is there a “?”; is こととは a particle for questions?

Noun phrase so the whole part in brackets is describing よる

に just indicates ‘when’

[ あたらしい いえに ひっこして きた ] よるに
[ Came to move into the new house ] night

On the night when they were moving into the new house,

おきた こととは……？

こと is the literal meaning of ‘incident’ here.

[ おきた ] こと

The incident that occurred.

とは, according to jlptsensei:

Can be used at the end of a sentence similarly to “what is…?” for information not yet revealed. (see example 9)

おきた こととは……？

What is the incident that occurred…?

I think in English this would be phrased completely differently, like:

On the night they moved into the new house, something happened…

page 47 sentence 1

@CherryApple

それは、にねんせいの きたの ことです。

Summary

Then, when she was a second year Student, there was an incident.

Typo here, it’s にねんせいのとき

I think this would be phrased as something like ‘This is the incident that happened when I was a second year student.’

To me, the は particle is stressing that we’re talking about this incident, the incident mentioned in the title sentence.

それは、
As for this (previously mentioned incident)

にねんせいのときの ことです。

It’s the thing of when I was a second year student //
It happened when I was a second year student.

page 47 sentence 2

@CherryApple

わたしたちは、あたらしい いえが できるまでの あいだだけ、かりる ことに なりました。

Summary

We Had decided to rent until the new House was Just built.

You got the gist here! One note:

あいだ here means ‘during the time period’ and indicates that something is happening continuously at the same time as something else.

The house is being built
↔
We are renting

So they are renting during the whole time the house is being built, until it is finished.

だけ is ‘only,’ they are only renting while the house is being built, and once it’s finished they will stop renting.

Oops, also you missed 小さないえ in this sentence:

わたしたちは、あたらしい いえが できるまでの あいだだけ、小さないえをかりる ことに なりました。

It was decided that they would rent a small house

page 47 sentence 3

@CherryApple

But we meet / greet …
Outskirts of a town …
Paint came Off …
Time worn building …

Long explanation incoming, sorry.

けれど、わたしたちを でむかえたのは、まちは ずれの ペンキの はげた、ふるめかしい たてもの だったのです。

わたしたちを でむかえたのは

There are a couple things going on here. Let’s break it down

わたしたちを
Us + direct object particle

This tells us that the object is ‘us.’

わたしたちを でむかえた

The verb that わたしたち is the object of is でむかえた, to meet

(something) met → us

The phrasing difference is a bit confusing here, so consider the difference between:

わたしたちはなにかをでむかえた
We met something.

versus

わたしたちをでむかえた

(Something) met us.

の here is then used as a nominalizer, so that でむかえた can be the subject of the whole sentence and marked with は

わたしたちをでむかえたのは

The thing that met us was…

Ok, so we know they met something. I’m going to skip all the way to the end of the sentence to find out what it was.

わたしたちを でむかえたのは、[ まちは ずれの ペンキの はげた、ふるめかしい ] たてもの だったのです。

わたしたちを でむかえたのは、[ … ] たてもの だったのです。

Ah ha!

‘The thing that met us was a building’

Now we know that all the middle stuff is just describing what kind of building it was.

まちは ずれの ペンキの はげた、ふるめかしい

まちは ずれ

On the outskirts of town

ペンキの はげた
peeling paint

ふるめかしい

time-worn

[ まちは ずれの ペンキの はげた、ふるめかしい ] たてもの

An [on the outskirts of town peeling paint time worn] building

In natural English:

A time-worn building on the outskirts of town with peeling paint.

[CherryApple]

@soggyboy

Long explanation incoming, sorry.

Please don’t apologize. I’m very thankful for your explanations and always looking forward to read them.

[HopeWaterfall]

I just finished this week! It felt a little easier than the previous chapters, it was just the ending that threw me off, took me a while to figure out what was happening, with the confusion around the name and which girl it was referring to.

Also, this week officially marks a quarter of the book read, so congratulations everyone!

[CherryApple]

I still have to translate this Story. But the next Weekend is 4 days Long because of Holidays. So I Hope to catch up then.

[soggyboy]

Week 7’s thread is live for anyone who’s ready to move on!

Week 7 10分でよめるこわい話・10 minute Scary Stories (Absolute Beginner Book Club)

Welcome to Week 7 of 10分でよめるこわいはなし ・ 10 minute Scary Stories Learn more about the Absolute Beginner Book Club here Visit the home page for 10 minute Scary Stories here Remember to set this thread and the Scary Stories home page to watching to receive notifications! [scary stories] Week 7 April 12th 2025 Start Page 57 End Page 70 Chapters しにがみ part 1 Previous week Week 6 Next week April 19th Home Thread Here Page numbers may differ between digital and ph…

How did this week’s reading go?

Difficulty

• Very hard; I couldn’t have read this with no book club
• Just right; I didn’t feel overwhelmed
• Too easy; Book club was not necessary
• I’ve read harder books than this

And did you like the story?

Enjoyment

If you haven’t finished this week, feel free to continue reading at your own pace.

[CherryApple]

Page 48 Sentence 1

いえじゅう かびくさく、へやの てんじゅうの しみは、まるで ひとの かおの よう……。

It was smelling of mold all over the House, the stain of the rooms ceiling was Like The apparence of someone’s face …

Page 48 Sentence 2

ひっこした よるも、なかなか ねむれませんでした。

It wasn’t easy to sleep in the moving night as well.

Page 48 Sentence 3

それでも、おねえちゃん、そんな こと おかまいなく、となりで ねいきを たてて います。

Nevertheless, her older sister, who had No thought for that Kind of thing, was sleeping next to her.

[CherryApple]

Page 49 Sentence 1

わたしは なんかいも ねがえりを くりかえして いる うちに、なにか けはいを かんじました。

Summary

わたしは なんかいも ねがえりを くりかえして いる
I was repeating to Turn over in bed many Times

This Sounds weird

I have the Feeling that うちに doesn’t mean in the House.

なにか けはいを かんじました。

I felt the presence of Something.

Page 49 Sentence 2

うすぐらい ライトの したに はっきり みえた のです。

A dim light from below was clearly visible.

Page 49 Sentence 3

あしもとに いる しろい ドレスの フランスにんっぎょう が……。

At her feet is a White dressed french doll…

Page 49 Sentence 4

じわじわ わたしの ベッドに はいあがって きました。

It slowly but steadily crawled Up my bed.

[CherryApple]

Page 50 Sentence 1

(おねえちゃん!) おおごえで さけぼう と しました
が、こえが でません。

(Older sister!) She tried to shout with a loud voice but wasn’t able to speak.

Page 50 Sentence 2

すると、“マイチャン……。” みみもとで、にんぎょうの ささやきが……。“きゃああああ!”

And then, “Mai …” the Doll whispered Close to her ear …
“Kyaaaah!”

Page 50 Sentence 3

わたしは、そのまま きをうしなって しまいました。

I fainted as it is.

This Sounds weird.

Page 51 Sentence 1

“マイ、おきなよ。あさだよ。”

“Mai, wake Up. It’s morning.”

Page 51 Sentence 2

おねえちゃんの こえで、めを きました わたしは、ぐるりと へやを みました。

I, who woke Up from the voice of my older sister, turned around looking into the rooms.

Page 51 Sentence 3

でも、あの にんぎょうは、どこにも いません。

But that Doll wasn’t anywhere.

Page 51 Sentence 4

“なんだ。あれって、ゆめか……。”

“What! It was a dream … ?”

Page 51 Sentence 5

おねえちゃんの かおが、きょうに あおざめました。

The face of the older sister suddenly went pale.

Page 51 Sentence 6

“それって、しろい ぢレスの にんぎょうの こと……？”

There! White dressed Doll …

Page 52 Sentence 1

おねえちゃんも、あの にんぎょうを みて いたのでした。

The older sister also saw that Doll.

Page 52 Sentence 2

ふたりは、おもわず かおを みあわせました。

The two of them unconciously looked at each Others faces.

[soggyboy]

page 49 sentence 1

@CherryApple

わたしは なんかいも ねがえりを くりかえして いる
I was repeating to Turn over in bed many Times

This Sounds weird

Yes, that’s right. It would be written differently in English to take out some of the repetition. Probably a natural English translation would be just ‘I tossed and turned’

@CherryApple

I have the Feeling that うちに doesn’t mean in the House.

Your feeling is correct!

うちに is a grammar point meaning ‘while’

わたしは なんかいも ねがえりを くりかえして いる うちに
As I tossed and turned many times over..

page 49 sentence 2

@CherryApple

うすぐらい ライトの したに はっきり みえた のです。

A dim light from below was clearly visible.

ライトのした would be ‘under the light’

‘Under the dim light, something was clearly visible’

This seems a little odd in English, we would phrase it like ‘in the dim light’

page 50 sentence 3

@CherryApple

Page 50 Sentence 3

わたしは、そのまま きをうしなって しまいました。

I fainted as it is.

This Sounds weird.

そのまま is a bit of an odd one to translate into English. まま is like ‘in this state’ as in ‘state of being.’ そのまま specifies that it’s ‘this’ state, the aforementioned one. In the previous sentence she was scared and screamed, so it was in this state of being scared that she passes out.

まま tends to disappear into an English translation:

目を閉じたままで彼はベンチに座っていた
He was sitting on a bench with his eyes closed.

Literally: In the state of having closed eyes, he was sitting on a bench.

page 51 sentence 2

@CherryApple

Page 51 Sentence 2

おねえちゃんの こえで、めを きました わたしは、ぐるりと へやを みました。

I, who woke Up from the voice of my older sister, turned around looking into the rooms.

I think I put the wrong definition of ぐるり on the vocab sheet so I’ve fixed that, ぐるり is more like ‘surroundings,’ emphasizing that she looked all around the room.

page 51 sentences 4 + 6

@CherryApple

Page 51 Sentence 4

“なんだ。あれって、ゆめか……。”

“What! It was a dream … ?”

Page 51 Sentence 6

“それって、しろい ぢレスの にんぎょうの こと……？”

There! White dressed Doll …

The って particle is the casual form of the quoting particle と

When it’s used with pronouns like ‘that’ (これ・それ・あれ) it carries a meaning of referring to something that was previously mentioned, or something that previously happened.

[Narrator sees a doll in the middle of the night. When she wakes up it’s not there]

“なんだ。あれって、ゆめか……。”

“Was “that” (the doll) a dream…?”

Then it continues with the sister asking:

“それって、しろい ドレスの にんぎょうの こと……？”

“When you say “that” (was that a dream?) [are you referring to] the doll in the white dress…?”

[CherryApple]

@soggyboy

うちに is a grammar point meaning ‘while’

Is there a Word for These Kind of vocabulary?
I meanうちに (while) Looks Like “going home” (うちにいく).
In Germany we use the term “false Friends” If an english Word Sounds or is written Like a German Word but means Something completely different.

[soggyboy]

@CherryApple

In Germany we use the term “false Friends” If an english Word Sounds or is written Like a German Word but means Something completely different.

The English term for this is ‘false cognate,’ but I think that refers to words in one language sounding similar to a word in a different language.

I think here since it’s two words/expressions in the same language that sound the same it would be called a homophone.

[CherryApple]

Page 52 Sentence 3

あなたたち、なにして いるの？ごはんよ。

What do you need to do? Eating.

Page 52 Sentence 4

そこに こえを かけたのは、おかあさん です。

There the mother called them.

Page 52 Sentence 5

おかあさん！きのうの よるね、にんぎょうの れいが でて きたんだよ。しろい ドレス の ね……。

Mother! Last night a Doll Ghost appeared. White Dress …

Page 53 Sentence 1

はい、はい。ごはんに しましょうね。

Yes, yes. Let’s eat.

Page 53 Sentence 2

おかあさんは わたしの ことばに みみを かそうと しません。

Mother didn’t listen to my words.

Page 53 Sentence 3

でも、ちらかった ものを かたづけようと おしいれを あけた とたん、みょうな かおを しました。

But she Put away the scattered around Things and as soon as she opened the closet she did a Strange face.

Page 53 Sentence 4

おしいれの おくで、ほこりに まみれた きばこを みつけた のです。

Inside the closet was a dust covered worden Box found.

Page 53 Sentence 5

あら、きのう こんなの あったかしら……？

Oh, I Wonder If it was this Kind of thing Yesterday …?

[CherryApple]

Page 54 Sentence 1

こわごわ あけると、なかには なんと ふるびた しろい どれすの にんぎょうが はいって いた のです。

In the fearfully opened inside was contained a surprisingly old-looking whitedoll-dress.

Page 54 Sentence 2

わたしから きのうの できごとを きいた おかあさんも、やっと しんじて くれました。

My mother finally started to believe yesterdays occurence she heard from me.

Page 54 Sentence 3

けっきょく、にんぎょうは おてらで くようして もらい ことに なりました。

In the end the Doll received a memorial Service for the dead at the temple.

Page 54 Sentence 4

すると、その ぎしきを して もらって いる さいちゅう、きこえた のです。

Thereupon was heard in the middle of receiving that ceremony.

Page 55 Sentence 1

アリガトウ……。という こえが どこかで。

“Thanks you …” Said a voice from somewhere.

Page 55 Sentence 2

あとから きいた はなしでは、まえに おなじ マイと いう なの おんなのこが、ここに すんで いた そうです。

After hearing rumors
Before the Same
Mai Said / called Mai
The Name of the girl
She lived Here is that so

I have absolutely No clue how to put that together to a Sentence.

Page 55 Sentence 3

そのこは、にんぎょうが だいすきで、きょうだいの ように いつも いっしょだったと……。

That child liked the Doll very much, they were always together Like siblings.

[CherryApple]

Page 56 Sentence 1

けてど おんなのこは じこで なくなって しまいました。

But the Girl passed away because of one accident.

Page 56 Sentence 2

Surely the Doll seemed to continuously wait for the Girl, that passed away, to return.