renshuu requires cookies to work correctly. Please enable cookies and reload this page.
ごとく, ごとき
Like A; as if A
5
彼のごとき男は今後二度と現れないだろう。
I probably won't get another guylikehim.
3
彼女は風のごとく駆けていった。
She ran likethewind.
3
彼と過ごした時間は夢のごとく思われた。
It felt like my time with him wasadream.
Getting the sentences
Construction
(Elements in parentheses are optional.)
ANoun
の
ごとく
Basic Examples:
弾丸のごとく(like a bullet)
AVerb: Dictionary Form
が
ごとく
AVerb: Casual, past (た)
が
ごとく
Basic Examples:
先読んだごとく(as you just read)
ANoun
の
ごとき
BNoun
Basic Examples:
鳥のごとき(like a bird)
AVerb: Dictionary Form
が
ごとき
BNoun
AVerb: Casual, past (た)
が
ごとき
BNoun
ANoun
の
ごとし
。
AVerb: Dictionary Form
が
ごとし
。
AVerb: Casual, past (た)
が
ごとし
。
ごとく vs. ごとき vs. ごとし
While these three generally have the same meaning, their locations vary in the sentence. ごとく comes in the middle of the sentence. ごとき precedes a noun, and acts as a modifier on that noun. ごとし comes at the end of the sentence.
Just in case anyone is wondering how you can have a subject marker (i.e., が) on the end of a verb, you can’t. Though their origin is the same, it’s actually the possessive/attributive が from Classical Japanese (compare, for example, 我が). Even that can only attach to something nominal, which the dictionary form of a verb isn’t, but what has become the dictionary form here was the 連体形 in Classical Japanese and that was able to function as a noun. The extension of this construction to the causal past tense in modern Japanese appears to be by analogy. Finally, the forms ごとく and ごとき may look odd if you're unfamiliar with Classical Japanese, but they are just the 連用形 and 連体形 forms of ごとし, which is why the form varies depending on where and how it appears in a sentence. It's a holdover from Classical Japanese. This is also why こどし itself can come at the end of a sentence. It's the Classical Japanese 終止形 form.
I'm pretty sure the form changes based on what follows. I.e. if the following clause is a verb, I think it's ごときに, and if it's a noun, I think it's ごとく. This will serve as a reminder though for me to check my grammar book later on.
Yes, 安努龍 is right. Though, ごとき has two different meanings. The one this grammar defines itself as has the following rules:
AごとくB (when B is a verb or adjective):
Nの (not optional) ごとく... V(辞)がごとく... [文]かのごとく...
AごときB (when B is a NOUN)
NのごときNoun V(辞)がごときNoun [文]かのごときNoun
When ごとく will be ending the sentence:
○○○のごとし。
The grammar 安努龍 was reminded of is a different meaning, with the particle afterward being decided based on what verb is being used later in the clause and it typically preceded by たかがNounごとき(_)
