Japanese with Manga

Managing to distribute all fliers with 〜終える

Grammar Explanation: Managing to complete an action with 〜終える

Manga panel from ご注文はうさぎですか？ showing example of Managing to distribute all fliers with 〜終える.
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Cocoa encounters Syaro standing outside.

ココア:
「今日はチラシ配(くば)り？」
“You're handing out fliers today?”
シャロ:
「全部(ぜんぶ)配(くば)り終(お)えるまで帰(かえ)れないわ」
“I can't go home until I finish handing out all of them.”
Literal: “I can't go home until I finish handing out all of them.”

Key Points

1配(くば)り終(お)える = finish handing them all out
  • 〜終(お)える attaches to the verb stem, so 配(くば)る becomes 配(くば)り終(お)える.
  • Here it means completing the whole flier-distribution task, with the feeling of getting through it rather than merely stopping.
2全部(ぜんぶ)(を) is the omitted object
  • In full form, 全部(ぜんぶ)を配(くば)り終(お)える means “finish handing out all of them”.
  • The を is omitted because the object is clear from Cocoa’s previous line about fliers.
3〜まで帰(かえ)れない = can’t go home until …
  • The clause before まで gives the endpoint Syaro has to reach before going home.
  • 全部(ぜんぶ)配(くば)り終(お)えるまで帰(かえ)れない means she cannot go home until the entire task is complete.

See Also

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