Grammar Info

N1 Lesson 5: 9/18

にかかっているTo depend on

Structure

Noun + （如何(いかん)）+ にかかっている
Phrase + かどうか(1) + （如何(いかん)）+ にかかっている
WH-Word + Phrase + か + （如何(いかん)）+ にかかっている

(1) か否(いな)か

Details

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    Standard

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    懸かって

About にかかっている

にかかっている is a structure that may be translated as 'to depend on (A)', or 'to rest on (A)'. It is a combination of the case marking particle に, and the ている continuous form of 懸(か)かる 'to depend'. Although にかかっている may attach to nouns, it is also frequently seen following set structures such as かどうか 'whether or not', and か否(いな)か 'yes or no'.

The に in にかかっている may sometimes be replaced with the adverb 如何(いかん)に 'how', 'in what way', or 'to what extent. In these situations, the meaning stays relatively the same, but will extend to 'depending on the way in which (A)', or 'depending on to what extent (A)'.

Fun Fact

懸(か)かる is from the same family of verbs as 掛(か)かる, 架(か)かる, and 罹(かか)る. These all have a similar meaning, but with a slightly different nuance. Japanese has many verbs like this that have the same reading, but with a nuance that changes based on the kanji. Due to kanji not always being used for many of these, it will be important to be able to recognize which nuance is being used in any given situation.

Examples

--:--

    ほむら：「すべてが一人(ひとり)の少女(しょうじょ)の選択(せんたく)にかかっている。」

    Homura: 'Everything depends on one girl's choice.'

    成功(せいこう)するかどうかは才能(さいのう)よりむしろどれだけ頑張(がんば)るかにかかっていると言(い)えるだろう。

    'It is fair to say that whether or not one succeeds depends on how hard one can work rather than one's ability.'

    コーチ：「勝(か)つも負(ま)けるも我々(われわれ)の協力(きょうりょく)にかかっているから頑張(かんば)ろう。」

    Coach: 'Whether we win or lose depends on our cooperation, so let's do our best!'

    記事(きじ)：「田中(たなか)社長(しゃちょう)は当社(とうしゃ)の将来(しょうらい)が、政府(せいふ)からの貸付(かしつ)けを受(う)けられるかどうか如何(いか)にかかっている、ということを確信(かくしん)しました。」

    Article: 'Company President Tanaka believes that the company's future depends on whether or not it is able to acquire a government loan.'

    小説(しょうせつ)：「帝国(ていこく)の運命(うんめい)はターニャの作戦(さくせん)が成功(せいこう)するか否(いな)かにかかっている。」

    Novel: 'The fate of the empire depends on whether Tanya's strategy succeeds or not.'

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