I Never Got Around to It, and Couldn’t Help Feeling ずじまい・に言わせれば・を禁じ得ない・始末だ

Use elevated expressions to evaluate conduct, describe unavoidable outcomes, and frame a considered conclusion. These written expressions make strong judgments or describe outcomes imposed by circumstances. Passive forms can shift attention to the people affected, so identify the experiencer before translating the result.

Patterns in this lesson

• ずじまい — Ended up not, Did not (in the end), Never did
• に言わせれば・に言わせると・に言わせたら — If you ask, In … opinion, According to
• ったら・といったら — Cannot tell, describe, say, express or find words for how, Words cannot express, Too … for words, Extremely
• こととて — Due to, Since, On account of, Because
• ならいざ知らず — Don’t know about it, Maybe it would or might be possible for
• を禁じ得ない — Cannot help feeling, Cannot but, Cannot hold back
• にかこつけて — In the name of, Using the excuse of, To use as a pretext of, Under the guise or pretense of
• ようによっては — Depending on the way, Depending on how
• べくもない — No (doubt or hope), There is no way, It is impossible, Not a hope in hell
• 始末だ — Ends up, Finally, In the end, (Unfortunately) As a result, This is what happened, To come about, To wind up
• ものなら② — If you were to do, If you try to, If … happens, Should there be
• それまでだ — If… then it is all in vain, It’s done, It is useless, No point, It is a waste, That’s it, It is all gone,
• といおうか — How to put it, How shall I put it, How should I put it, Or perhaps, Or maybe, Call it … or

を余儀なくされる says circumstances left no reasonable alternative. The passive form foregrounds the affected group and often carries an unwanted tone.

In an incident report, note whether a consequence was chosen or imposed. This distinction affects how responsibility is understood.

Vocabulary