【No. 1126】Monuke no Kara (もぬけの殻 - Completely Empty)
もぬけ "monuke" comes from the Japanese verb: もぬける (monukeru), which means that cicadas or snakes cast their shells/skins.
殻 (kara) means "shell" or "slough," so "monuke no kara" originally meant "cicada shell" or "snake's slough."
Later, this has come to be used for buildings where no one is present or containers with nothing.
Also, it is thought that も (mo) of "monukeru" comes from 身 (mi - body) or 裳 (mo - kimono/clothes), so "monukeru" implies that "one's body leave" or "one leave by clothes."
(Note that 抜ける(nukeru) of "monukeru" means to leave by somewhere.)
建物などに人が全く居ない状態のことを、「もぬけの殻」と言います。
「もぬけ」は、蛇や蝉が脱皮することを意味する「もぬける」という動詞から来ています。
「殻」は、"shell" を意味するので、「もぬけの殻」はもともと蛇や蝉の抜け殻を意味する言葉でした。
これが、人間がいなくなった建物や、物が無くなった箱などにも使われるようになったというわけです。
また、「もぬける」の「も」は、「身」や「裳（着物）」だと考えられており、「身が抜ける」や「着物から抜け出す」ことがこの言葉の語源だとされています。
Corrections (1)
- If there are completely no people in a building, the situation is called もぬけの殻 (monuke no kara) in Japanese.
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The situation in which there are completely absolutely no people in a building is called もぬけの殻 (monuke no kara) in Japanese.
This sounds more natural to me. We don't usually use the word "completely" for the number of people, though we can use it to describe spaces and other things. Example: "The building was completely empty." or "The room was completely full." or "I am completely finished with work."
In the sentence above, "absolutely" is used to emphasize that we are definitely sure there are no people in the building.
- もぬけ "monuke" comes from the Japanese verb: もぬける (monukeru), which means that cicadas or snakes cast their shells/skins.
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もぬけ (monuke) comes from the Japanese verb: もぬける (monukeru), which means that for cicadas or snakes cast to shed their shells/skins.
I'd recommend parenthesis for English translations, but the important thing is to be consistent. You use parenthesis elsewhere, so it's best to keep doing it that way.
Colons should only be used to add emphasis to something specific or to show that what follows is a list. Both of these are almost always found at the end of a sentence, never in the middle.
Example, "There is a specific verb in Japanese that describes the act of an animal shedding its skin: もぬける (monukeru)."
Example, "I need a few things from the grocery store: milk, eggs, and bread."
However, when you are trying to emphasize a word or phrase with a colon, it's best to do this sparingly. It sounds kind of dramatic, like you are building something up and then revealing it at the end.
- 殻 (kara) means "shell" or "slough," so "monuke no kara" originally meant "cicada shell" or "snake's slough."
- This sentence is perfect! No correction needed!
- Later, this has come to be used for buildings where no one is present or containers with nothing.
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Later, this phrase has come to be used for buildings where no one is present or containers with nothing there are no people or objects inside.
This sounds more natural.
- Also, it is thought that も (mo) of "monukeru" comes from 身 (mi - body) or 裳 (mo - kimono/clothes), so "monukeru" implies that "one's body leave" or "one leave by clothes."
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Also, it is thought that も (mo) of "monukeru" comes from 身 (mi - body) or 裳 (mo - kimono/clothes), so "monukeru" implies that "one's body leave has left" or "someone leave by has left their clothes."
"Leave" is future tense. "Leaving" is present tense. "Has left" is past tense. So when you find someone's clothes, their body has already left in the past.
- (Note that 抜ける(nukeru) of "monukeru" means to leave by somewhere.)
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(Note that 抜ける(nukeru) of "monukeru" means to leave by somewhere.)
It sounds better without the "by."
I did not know the word "slough" in English, so thanks for teaching me something about my own language! もぬけの殻 is also an interesting phrase.
Excellent work on these sentences! You were attempting some difficult grammar rules. A lot of English writers don't know how to properly put a parenthetical sentence at the end like that either.
Thank you so much for the corrections and helpful comments!
I learned something new! And I'm so glad to hear you say that (^^)