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

外国人に話しかけられたとき、どうしていいのか分からなかった。

Sentence Analyzer

外国人 話しかけられた とき どうして いい 分からなかった

English Translation

Being spoken to by a foreigner, I did not know what to do.

Furigana

外国人(がいこくじん)(はな)しかけられたとき、どうしていいのか()からなかった。

Romanji

Gaikokujin ni hanashikakerareta toki, dōshite ii no ka wakaranakatta.

Words

外国人 (がいこくじん)
foreigner; foreign citizen; foreign national; alien; non-Japanese
()
at (place, time); in; on; during; to (direction, state); toward; into; for (purpose); because of (reason); for; with; by; from; as (i.e. in the role of); per; in; for; a (e.g. "once a month"); and; in addition to; if; although
話しかける (はなしかける)
to address (someone); to accost a person; to talk (to someone); to begin to talk; to start a conversation
とき (とき)
regular (stops at every station) Jouetsu-line Shinkansen
如何して (どうして)
why?; for what reason; how; in what way; for what purpose; what for
いい (いい)
good; excellent; fine; nice; pleasant; agreeable; sufficient (can be used to turn down an offer); ready; prepared; profitable (e.g. deal, business offer, etc.); beneficial; OK
()
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
()
indicates a question (sometimes rhetorical); or; whether or not; some- (e.g. something, someone); indicates doubt, uncertainty, etc.; emphatic prefix; suffix forming adjectives or adverbs; in that way
分かる (わかる)
to understand; to comprehend; to grasp; to see; to get; to follow; to become clear; to be known; to be discovered; to be realized; to be realised; to be found out

Kanji

Readings: ガイ、 ゲ、 そと、 ほか、 はず.す、 はず.れる、 と-
Meaning: outside
Readings: コク、 くに
Meaning: country
Readings: ジン、 ニン、 ひと、 -り、 -と
Meaning: person
Readings: ワ、 はな.す、 はなし
Meanings: tale, talk
Readings: ブン、 フン、 ブ、 わ.ける、 わ.け、 わ.かれる、 わ.かる、 わ.かつ
Meanings: part, minute of time, segment, share, degree, one's lot, duty, understand, know, rate, 1%, chances, shaku/100