Receiving a watching with 〜れる
Grammar Explanation: Receptive verbs with 〜れる
After Chino shows Cocoa to the changing room, Chino goes to get Cocoa’s uniform. Left alone, Cocoa gets a feeling otherwise.
- ココア:
- 「あれ… 誰もいないはずなのに誰かに見られているような」
- “Huh? Even though nobody should be here, it feels like I'm being watched by someone.”
- Literal: “Huh? Even though nobody should be here, it's like I'm being seen by someone.”
- “Huh? Even though nobody should be here, it feels like I'm being watched by someone.”
Key Points
1見られている means Cocoa is being watched
- 見る becomes 見られる in the receptive, so Cocoa is not doing the watching. She is receiving someone else’s gaze.
- 〜ている makes the watching feel ongoing in this moment.
2誰かに marks the watcher
- In a receptive sentence, に can mark the person doing the action the subject receives.
- 誰かに見られている means “being watched by someone”, with the watcher left unknown.
3誰もいないはずなのに sets up the contradiction
- 誰もいない means “nobody is here”; はず adds Cocoa’s expectation that this should be true.
- なのに turns that expectation into a contrast: nobody should be here, and yet she feels watched.
4ような leaves the feeling unfinished
- The final ような trails off after “like…” or “as if…”, leaving the full thought implied.
- Cocoa is describing an uneasy impression rather than stating with certainty that someone is there.
Vocabulary
見る (To see)
見る means to see or look at something. It can also mean to examine its condition or nature.
See Also
- Grammar: Expectation with はず
- Grammar: Ongoing actions and resulting states with 〜ている
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