英作文演習～原則編②
記事学び
【テーマ】主語についての一般的知識②
主語itは、「天候、場所に関する状況、距離、時間など」を示す場合があり、また、漠然と環境を指したり（すなわちthe thing, person, or matter in questionとか、general and vague circumstances or state of thingsといった内容）、漠然と先行または後続の内容を表わす場合もあります。
“Who is there (あるいはthat)?” ”It’s me.”（「誰だ？」「僕です。」）
I cannot see who it is at this distance.
It isn’t only a question of money.
It all seems like a dream to me.
I wonder what it is like when he gets angry. (cf. I wonder what he is
like at home.)
I don’t like it when it is hot. (cf. I don’t like hot weather.)
What was it like in Tokyo? －Oh, there were crowds everywhere. (cf. He went to Yale, but apparently he did not like it there, he left a year and a half later.)
Poor Rose －it must have been lonely in that house all by herself.
－G. Green, The Living Room
(cf. Poor Rose －she must have been lonely living in that house all by
herself.)
Can you come today or must it be tomorrow?
He is trying to find a suitable house, but he will find it difficult.
It would have been better if you had left it unsaid. (＝You had better
have left it unsaid.そんなことは言わないでおいた方がよかったのに。)
It makes him so angry when he hears anyone speak ill of me.（人が私の悪口を言うのを聞くと、彼はカンカンになって怒るんです。）
次の例は慣用的な用例である。
I saw there was nothing for it but to wait.（待つ以外に手はない。）
The self-conceited person takes it for granted that he is superior to
others.（うぬぼれ屋は自分はもちろん他人より優れていると考えます。）
【本問題】次の日本文を英訳して下さい。
１、すっかり春めいて来ましたねえ。
（解答例）It has turned quite springlike again, hasn’t it?
２、月が照っていたので、森の中は昼のように明るかった。
（解答例）The moon was shining, and it was almost as bright as day in the woods.
３、ここの景色のきれいなこと。
（解答例）How beautiful it is here!
（参考）It will be wonderful when spring comes.
４、部屋の中はシーンとしていた。
（解答例）It was very quiet (あるいはsilent) in the room.
（参考）The room was now almost dark.
５、「今何時か分かりますか？」「11時過ぎです。」
（解答例）”Do you know what time it is?” ”It is past eleven.”
６、6時を打ったばかりです。
（解答例）It has just gone (あるいはstruck) six.
７、今日は金曜日だ。
（解答例）①It is Friday today.
②Today is Friday.
８、計画は朝になってから相談しても十分間に合うよ。
（解答例）It will be time enough to talk plans over in the morning.
９、上野駅までどのくらいありますか？
（解答例）①How far is it to Ueno Station?
②What is the distance to Ueno Station?
10、わが国の列車内では喫煙が許されている。
（解答例）Smoking is allowed in our railway trains.
11、一人息子を亡くして、彼は気も狂わんばかりになった。
（解答例）①Losing his only son nearly drove him mad.
②The loss of his only son nearly drove him mad.
12、学校がじきに夏休みに入るということが、怠け者の学生達に学業をおおっぴらにサボらせる、よい口実を与えた。
（解答例）①School breaking up immediately after for the summer
holiday gave the lazy students a good excuse for neglecting school
work openly.
②The lazy students neglected school work openly as the summer
holidays were near at hand.
13、僕をだまそうたってダメだよ。
（解答例）It is no use (あるいはgood) trying to deceive me.
14、そんな風な物言いをしても馬鹿げています。
（解答例）It is absurd talking (あるいはto talk) like that.
（解説）動名詞の意味上の主語が代名詞なら、その所有格で示します。
Wasn’t it absolutely tragic, his failing that exam!
As the minutes passed without either of us furnishing a word, he began to fidget.
Just fancy Earnest thinking of buying a gift for me!
15、趣味の説明はつかぬもの。蓼（たで）食う虫も好き好き。
（解答例）There is no accounting for tastes.
（参考）There is no ～ingの形は知っておくと便利ですが、これもIt is
impossible to～やNobody can～の形式で言えるので、自信が無い時には無理に使わないことです。
16、上りつつある方が、上り終わったよりも幾多の点で快い。
（解答例）To be rising is in many respects more agreeable than to have risen.
17、分かるということはやがて許すことになる。
（解答例）To understand is to forgive.
（参考）不定詞の場合はAの行為はBに通じます。つまり、A→Bであるのに対し、動名詞はAの行為はとりもなおさずBの行為です。つまり、A＝Bとなります。
Seeing is believing.
She was a charming gentle creature whom to know was to love.
To remain silent would have been to admit his guilt.（黙っていたら、自分が悪かったことを認めることになったであろう。）
Teaching a student how to think clearly and to write exactly is
educating him.
Just talking to him was learning something valuable.
The attitude of ‘liking what you do’ comes to the same thing as ‘doing what you like’.
18、金はもうけ方よりも使い方の方がずっと難しい。
（解答例）How to spend money is far more difficult than how to get it.
（参考）When to start was the next question.（いつ出発すべきかが次の問題であった。）
19、彼が試験にパスするなんてまず不可能だよ。
（解答例）①For him to pass the examination is next to impossible.
②It is next impossible for him to pass the examination.
（解説）It isの次にgood, bad, right, wrong, easy, difficult, hard,
possible, impossible, natural, necessary, unnecessary, safe, dangerous等の形容詞を置けば、いろいろな事柄が非常に楽に言い表せます。また、ある行為に表われた、人の「性質」を示すkind, good, nice, sweet, generous,
unkind, cruel, horrid, clever, foolish, stupid, silly, decent, mean,
thoughtful, considerate, thoughtless, inconsiderate, brave, cowardly等の形容詞の場合も、You are very kind to say so.の意味でIt is very kind of
you (a kind thing or act done by youの意)と言いますが、この場合はfor
somebodyのforの代わりにofが来ることを覚えておく必要があります。
また、It isの次に名詞が来ることも当然あります。
It is a bad habit to smoke in bed.（ベッドでタバコを吸うのは悪い癖だ。）
Itの次に来る動詞はbe以外の自動詞または他動詞のこともあります。
It never pays to lose your temper.（短気は損気。）
It did not occur to me to burn that letter.（その手紙を焼くことは思いつきませんでした。）
It costs money and takes time to compile a dictionary.（一冊の辞書を作るには金もかかるし、時間もかかるものです。）
How does it feel to get your first book out?（初めて自分の本を出す気分はどんなものですか。）
