This site will be taken down March 31st, 2026.

This was not an easy decision to make. For the last couple years, I have been struggling to find motivation for this site and to keep up with basic maintenance and security updates. With the rise of AI and more sophisticated tools, the usefulness of sites like this is questionable and traffic has nose-dived. I just don't have it in me to keep doing this. Thank you all for 10 years of support!

Zach

庶民のなりわいは、米をつくることだった。

Sentence Analyzer

庶民 なりわい つくる こと だった

English Translation

The ordinary people had their livelihood in farming rice.

Furigana

庶民(しょみん)のなりわいは、(こめ)をつくることだった。

Romanji

Shomin no nariwai wa, kome o tsukuru koto datta.

Words

庶民 (しょみん)
masses; common people
()
indicates possessive; nominalizes verbs and adjectives; substitutes for "ga" in subordinate phrases; (at sentence-end, falling tone) indicates a confident conclusion; (at sentence-end) indicates emotional emphasis; (at sentence-end, rising tone) indicates question
生業 (せいぎょう、なりわい、すぎわい、すぎあい)
occupation; livelihood; calling
()
topic marker particle; indicates contrast with another option (stated or unstated); adds emphasis
(こめ、よね、めめ、コメ)
(husked grains of) rice; 88 years old
()
indicates direct object of action; indicates subject of causative expression; indicates an area traversed; indicates time (period) over which action takes place; indicates point of departure or separation of action; indicates object of desire, like, hate, etc.
作る (つくる)
to make; to produce; to manufacture; to build; to construct; to prepare (food); to brew (alcohol); to raise; to grow; to cultivate; to train; to till; to draw up (a document); to make out; to prepare; to write; to create (an artistic work, etc.); to compose; to coin (a phrase); to organize; to organise; to establish; to found; to have (a child); to make up (one's face, etc.); to fabricate (an excuse, etc.); to form (a line, etc.); to set (a record); to commit (a sin, etc.)
(こと、こん)
thing; matter; incident; occurrence; event; something serious; trouble; crisis; circumstances; situation; state of affairs; work; business; affair; after an inflectable word, creates a noun phrase indicating something the speaker does not feel close to; nominalizing suffix; pretending to ...; playing make-believe ...; alias; aka; nickname; alternative name; also known as
()
be; is; indicates past or completed action; indicates light imperative

Kanji

Reading: ショ
Meanings: commoner, all, bastard
Readings: ミン、 たみ
Meanings: people, nation, subjects
Readings: ベイ、 マイ、 メエトル、 こめ、 よね
Meanings: rice, USA, metre