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たら - tara is one of several words in Japanese that refer to conditional (if)
dependence. |
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We learned one use of this word in Lesson 14:
tara doo desu ka used in recommending an activity to the
listener.
tara doo desu ka literally translates as "how is it,
if." |
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When we say "A たら B," we mean that "B is valid, contingent on
the fulfillment of A." |
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That is to say, the event, action, or situation
in B is realized if and when the condition A is met. |
| 日本に行ったら、着物を買います。 |
I will buy kimono if and when I go to
Japan. |
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nihon-ni ittara, kimono-o kaimasu. |
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The initial た - ta in たら -
tara comes from the short form past tense endings of predicates. |
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| よむ-> よんだら |
verbs:
to drink - if/when drinking |
| やさしい -> やさしかったら |
い-adjectives:
easy - if/when easy |
| しずかだ -> しずかだったら |
な-adjectives:
calm, quiet - if/when calm |
| やすみだ -> やすみだったら |
noun + です - desu:
holiday, rest - if/when holiday |
| ～ない -> ～なかったら |
negative clauses:
not - if/when not |
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Sometimes, the clause before tara describes a
possible condition and the clause after it the
consequence which then follows.
Whether or not the condition is actually met is largely an
open issue with this set of sentences.
It may be fairly likely, as in the first example, or very
unlikely, as in the last. |
天気がよかったら、
散歩に行きます。 |
We will go for a walk, if the weather is fine. |
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tenki-ga yokattara,
sanpo-ni ikimasu. |
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山下先生に会ったら、
そのことを聞こうと思います。 |
I will ask about it, if I see Professor Yamashita. |
yamashita sensei-wa attara,
sono koto-o kikoo, to omoimasu. |
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日本人だったら、
この言葉を知っているでしょう。 |
If somebody is a Japanese person, then they will probably
know this word. |
nihonjin dattara,
kono kotoba-o shitte-iru deshoo. |
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宝くじに当たったら、
アムネスティにお金を送ります。 |
I would send money to Amnesty International, if I should win
the lottery. |
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takarakuji-ni atattara,
emunesuti-ni okane-o okurimasu.
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Note that when you say "A tara B,"
you cannot express
a sequence of events in which B occurs before A;
B can only take place at the time A comes true or later.
You cannot therefore use tara to describe an "if"
sentence like the following.
("B"= this weekend, which comes before "A"= next week.) |
来週試験があったら、
今度の週末は
勉強したほうがいいですよ。 |
It will be better for you to study this weekend,
if you have an exam next week. |
raishuu shiken-ga attara,
kondo-no shuumatsu-wa
benkyoo-shita hoo-ga ii desu yo. |
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Sometimes, the tara clause describes a very
probable condition,
and the second clause describes the event
that will take place as soon as the situation is
realized.
With this type of sentence, tara simply arranges
future events and activities in a temporal sequence. |
今晩、家に帰ったら、
電話します。 |
I will call you when I get home tonight |
konban, uchi-ni kaettara,
denwa shimasu. |
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宿題が終わったら、
遊びに行きましょう。 |
Let's go out and have some fun once we are done
with the homework. |
shukudai-ga owattara,
asobi-ni ikimashoo. |
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Note that the very same sentences could be interpreted in
this way or in the way shown earlier.
The difference lies not in the sentences themselves,
but in
the possibly different ways the real world could be like.
If you expect to be home tonight in all likelihood,
the first sentence here describes what you will do
when
you get home.
If, on the other hand, you are not certain whether you will
be home tonight,
the same tara sentence describes what you will do
if you get home. (* 6) |
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Finally, the tara clause can describe a condition
that is unreal and contrary to fact.
With this type of sentence, you express a purely
hypothetical condition and its probable result. |
私が猫だったら、
一日中寝ているでしょう。 |
If I were a cat, I would be asleep all day long. |
watashi-ga, neko dattara,
ichi-nichi juu nete-iru deshoo. |
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お金があったら、
車を買うんですけど。 |
If I had money, I would buy a car. |
okane-ga attara,
kuruma-o kau-n desu kedo. |
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*6 Throughout the uses of the tara conditional
clauses discussed here, one thing remains constant:
A tara B can only describe a conditional dependency
that holds naturally between A and B.
You cannot describe with
tara an "if" dependency of
the "B even if A" type,
where B holds
in spite of A. |
あなたが結婚したかったら、
私は結婚じません。 |
I will not marry you even if you want to. |
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anata-ga
kekkon-shita-kattara,
watashi-wa, kekkon shimasen.
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