Japanese with Manga

Not hot enough for the AC with 〜ほど〜ない

Grammar Explanation: Not as much as with 〜ほど〜ない

Nishikata sits on the couch with a flat look, thinking to himself, while Takagi leans toward the low table, where a paper fan lies. Chii smiles in the foreground.
からかい上手の（元）高木さん » Volume 12 » Page 24

On a warm morning, Chii has taken over the electric fan, chasing it as it swings so the breeze only reaches her. Nishikata complains that none of the air is getting to him, and Takagi laughs.

西片(にしかた):
「朝(あさ)だし、冷房(れいぼう)入(い)れるほど暑(あつ)くはないんだよなー。」
“It's still morning, and it's not really hot enough to turn on the AC.”
高木(たかぎ):
「あ。」
“Oh.”

Key Points

1冷房(れいぼう)入(い)れるほど暑(あつ)くはない = “not hot enough to turn on the AC”
  • Verb + ほど + negative names a level and says it hasn’t been reached. 冷房(れいぼう)入(い)れるほど is “to the point of turning on the AC”, and 暑(あつ)くはない says the heat isn’t there yet.
  • This ほど doesn’t compare the morning with something hotter. It sets a threshold, the heat it would take before the AC is worth it.
  • It’s warm enough that Chii is hogging the fan, but Nishikata judges that it isn’t warm enough for the AC.
2Contrastive は in 暑(あつ)くはない
  • 暑(あつ)くない is “not hot”. Putting は after the く form, 暑(あつ)くはない, singles out the heat for denial.
  • It suggests “it’s warm, sure, but not hot”, which fits a morning when Nishikata still wants the fan.
3Giving a reason with 朝(あさ)だし
  • し after a plain-form clause gives a reason, often one of several. 朝(あさ)だし is “it’s morning, for one thing”.
  • Nishikata names only one reason, but し hints he could list more.
4Musing with んだよなー
  • んだ is the casual form of のだ. It presents the line as an explanation of the situation, here why the AC is off.
  • よな usually asks the listener to agree. In a thought bubble there’s no listener, so the drawn-out よなー sounds like Nishikata talking himself into it.
5冷房(れいぼう)入(い)れる with the particle dropped
  • 冷房(れいぼう) is air conditioning used for cooling. 入(い)れる means “to switch on” an appliance.
  • The full form is 冷房(れいぼう)を入(い)れる. Casual speech often drops を.

Vocabulary

(Morning)

朝(あさ) is the morning.

(To put in)

入(い)れる is to put something inside something else. It also means to let someone in, or to make tea or coffee.

(Extent)

ほど is the degree or extent of something: “about” or “as much as”. 〜ば〜ほど means “the more…, the more…”.

(Hot)

暑(あつ)い describes hot weather or air.

(Ah)

あ is a short sound people make when they suddenly notice or remember something, or when they want someone’s attention.

See Also

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