Countless forbidden spells with 数えきれない
Grammar Explanation: Unable to finish with 〜きれない (Future entry)
Qifrey has explained that forbidden magic was created during an age of war to hurt people, and that it has been banned ever since. Coco asks him to teach her every spell she must never use, because not knowing scares her. Qifrey tells her to come with him.
- キーフリー:
- 「禁止魔法は数えきれないほどあるんだけど」
- “There are more forbidden spells than anyone could count, but...”
Key Points
1数えきれないほど, “too many to count”
- 数え is the stem of 数える, “to count”, and 〜きれない says the counting could never be finished.
- Nobody is actually counting. 数えきれない describes the number itself, like “countless” in English.
- ほど means “to the extent that”. 数えきれないほどある is “there are so many that you couldn’t count them”.
2あるんだけど, “there are, but…”
- んだ presents the statement as an explanation for Coco, who has just asked to learn them all.
- けど leaves the sentence open. It sets up a contrast with what Qifrey says next, so Coco shouldn’t lose heart yet.
3禁止魔法は
- は makes forbidden magic the topic, the thing Coco asked about.
Vocabulary
禁止 (Prohibition)
禁止 is a rule that something must not be done.
魔法 (Magic)
魔法 means magic, sorcery, or a magical spell.
数える (To count)
数える is to count things to find out how many there are. 数えきれない means “too many to count”.
ほど (Extent)
ほど is the degree or extent of something: “about” or “as much as”. 〜ば〜ほど means “the more…, the more…”.
ある (To exist)
ある is to exist or be in a place, for things and plants rather than people or animals. It also means to have something, or for an event to take place.
See Also
- Grammar: Reasoning with 〜のだ
- Grammar: But with 〜けど and 〜けれど
- Grammar: Marking the topic with は and も
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