Keeping my dad company with 相手
Kanji Explanation: Mutuality and appearance with 相
Akari encounters an older gentleman looking for a police box, so he can report his missing daughter and son-in-law. Akari offers to take him around and see if they can find the couple. Once they are reunited, the daughter thanks Akari for finding her father.
- 娘:
- 「迷子になった父の相手をするの大変でしたでしょ？」
- “It must have been tough dealing with my dad when he got lost, right?”
- Literal: “It must have been hard being the companion for my father after he got lost, right?”
- 「本当ガンコおやじで…」
- “He really is a stubborn old man...”
- “It must have been tough dealing with my dad when he got lost, right?”
- 父さん:
- 「迷子と言うなっ」
- “Don't say lost!”
- 「うるさい」
- “Annoying...”
- “Don't say lost!”
Key Points
1相手をする = to deal with or keep someone company
- In this scene, 相手をする means Akari had to look after the father and stay with him.
- It is more than just “opponent” or “partner”; the expression means taking on someone as the person you are occupied with.
2の turns the father into the person being dealt with
- 迷子になった父の 相手をする means “to deal with the father who got lost”.
- The clause before の describes which father she is talking about.
3でしたでしょ asks for agreement
- 大変でしたでしょ？ means “that was tough, right?”
- The daughter assumes the effort was obvious and asks for confirmation sympathetically.
See Also
- External: Marking the direct object with を
- Grammar: Quoting and reporting with と and って
- Kanji: Hands and skill with 手
ARIA The MASTERPIECE © its respective creators. It is used here for educational commentary.