Japanese with Manga

A submerged town with 水没

Manga panel from ARIA The MASTERPIECE showing example of A submerged town with 水没.
ARIA The MASTERPIECE » Volume 1 » Page 104

While out buying cat food during acqua alta, when tides have risen onto the streets, Akari is caught in a heavy downpour. She finds herself near Himeya Company, where her friend Aika lives, and she’s invited in to stay the night. As the two watch the falling rain through a window, Akari types an e-mail about her adventure that day.

灯里(あかり):
水没(すいぼつ)した(まち)(ある)いたり(たき)のような(あめ)()ったり」
“Walking through a flooded town or getting caught in a downpour...”
Literal: “Walking through a town that had become submerged, getting caught in rain like a waterfall, and so on...”

She finishes by writing that it was a wonderful adventure and an enjoyable day.

Key Points

1水没(すいぼつ)した(まち) = “a town that was submerged / flooded”
  • 水没(すいぼつ) means being submerged under water, not just getting a little wet
  • In this scene, 水没(すいぼつ)した(まち) means a town whose streets have gone under water from the rising tide
2〜たり〜たり = listing notable experiences
  • (ある)いたり and ()ったり are たり-form verbs used to list representative actions or events
  • Basic pattern: Aたり Bたりする “do things like A and B”
  • Here the sentence trails off after 〜たり, which gives it a reflective “things like…” feeling as she recounts her day
3(たき)のような(あめ)()う = “to get caught in rain like a waterfall”
  • (たき)のような(あめ) is a vivid comparison for extremely heavy rain
  • () is often used for unpleasant or unexpected experiences, so (あめ)() is “get caught in the rain” rather than simply “meet rain”
4How the sentence is built
  • 水没(すいぼつ)した modifies : “the town that was flooded”
  • (たき)のような modifies (あめ): “rain like a waterfall”

See Also

  • External: Marking the direct object with を
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