Japanese from zero · N2 Lesson 43

Every form compared (2)

に決まっている/に相違ない/にほかならない/に過ぎない/っこない/得ない/かねない・ねばならない/ざるを得ない/よりほかない/てはならない/ないではいられない/てならない・もの and こと・ written and spoken

In this lesson, you will learn to choose between the ways of saying how certain something is, the ways of saying you must do something or can't help it, the もの and こと families, and the forms that belong to writing or to speech. Ai gives Lisa the notebook of business Japanese she kept in her first year at the company.

By the end you will be able to say

宛先を間違えると、大問題になりかねません。Getting the address wrong could cause serious trouble.

上司に『ごくろうさま』と言ってはなりません。You must never say ごくろうさま to your boss.

電話では『承りました』と言います。On the phone, you say 承りました (I have received your request).

封筒には会社の名前の後に『御中』と書きます。On an envelope, you write 御中 after the company's name.

お礼を言わないではいられない。I can't help thanking you.

The grammar in this lesson

Certainty compared: に決まっている / に相違ない / にほかならない / に過ぎない / っこない / 得ない / かねない — From 'surely' through 'could, sadly' to 'no way', plus two forms that name or shrink a thing.
Must and can't help compared: ねばならない / ざるを得ない / よりほかない / てはならない / ないではいられない / てならない — Three ways to say you must, one rule against something, and two ways to say you can't stop yourself.
The もの and こと families compared — もの speaks of how things are or of a strong feeling; こと points to one matter: advice, an exclamation, a feeling about a fact, 'without', or a person's character.
Written and spoken register: につき / にて / 及び / ぬ / たまえ against だって / もん / くせして / っこない — Signs, emails and reports use one set of forms; friends use another, and mixing them sounds wrong.