Blog · The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, Part 2
The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, Part 2 (3): 4 Expressions
This is the last article on The Tale of the Bamboo Cutter, Part 2. In the last article, one prince's fake treasure was exposed and a minister's fire-proof robe went up in flames.
Two men are left: Ōtomo no Miyuki, who must find a jewel from a dragon's neck, and Isonokami no Marotari, who must find a shell that swallows are said to have. This article also has the most famous word joke in the story.
1. 待ちきれない（まちきれない）— can't wait any longer
Verb stem＋きれない means "can't finish" or "can't do completely." 待ちきれない is "can't wait any longer."
待ちきれなくなった大伴のみゆきは、自分で船に乗って海へ出ました。
Unable to wait any longer, Ōtomo no Miyuki got on a ship and went out to sea himself.
He orders his servants to find the dragon, but they are scared and run away. So he goes himself. A terrible storm comes, and he returns sick, with eyes swollen "like two plums." He gives up.
Today:
- 夏休みが待ちきれない！
I can't wait for summer vacation! - 待ちきれなくて、先に食べ始めた。
I couldn't wait, so I started eating first.
Tip: 〜きれない also works with other verbs: 食べきれない（too much to eat）, 数えきれない（countless）.
2. 〜たとたん（に）— just as; the moment that
Verb-た＋とたん means "at the exact moment ... (something unexpected happened)."
「子安貝を取ったぞ」と喜んだとたん、綱が切れて、まろたりは下に落ちてしまいました。
The moment he cheered, "I've got the shell!", the rope broke and Marotari fell.
Marotari has himself pulled up in a basket to a swallow's nest under the kitchen roof. He grabs something hard, and then the rope breaks.
Today:
- 家を出たとたん、雨が降りだした。
The moment I left the house, it started to rain. - 座ったとたんに、電話が鳴った。
Just as I sat down, the phone rang.
Tip: The second half is always something you didn't plan or expect. You can't use とたん for your own planned action: ✕ 家に帰ったとたん、宿題をした.
3. かいがない — it's no use; all for nothing
かい（甲斐）means "result" or "reward for effort." かいがない means your effort was wasted.
貝がなかったので「かいがない」。
There was no shell (kai), so it was "no use (kai ga nai)."
When Marotari opens his hand, he is holding not a shell but old swallow droppings. 貝 (shell) and 甲斐 (reward) are both read かい. The storyteller claims this is where かいがない came from. It is a pun, not a true word history, but it is a very old one.
Today:
- 一生懸命勉強したかいがあって、合格した。
All my hard studying paid off: I passed. - 走ってきたかいがなかった。電車はもう出ていた。
Running here was for nothing. The train had already left.
Tip: 〜かいがある is the positive form, and it's very common: 待ったかいがあった — "It was worth the wait."
4. とうとう — finally; in the end
とうとう means "finally, after a long time," and often "sadly." It describes the end of a long process.
かぐや姫のうわさは、とうとう帝の耳にもとどきました。
In the end, word of Kaguya-hime reached even the Emperor's ears.
All five men have failed. Now the most powerful man in Japan has heard about her. Part 2 ends here.
Today:
- 三年かかって、とうとう日本語能力試験に合格した。
After three years, I finally passed the JLPT. - 雨がとうとう雪に変わった。
The rain finally turned to snow.
Tip: やっと also means "finally," but it sounds more relieved and happy. とうとう can be happy or sad: とうとう会えなかった — "In the end, we never met."
Read it in the story
What will the Emperor do? And why does Kaguya-hime cry every time she looks at the moon? The final part will be released on Thursday, October 22.