2

僕らを待っているのではなさそうなところを見るに、 まだ[回末]{うえまつ}[李花子]{りかこ}は外に出ていないのだろうか。

I've seen that に after conjugated verbs quite a few times now, but don't quite get what it means. It doesn't seem to a shortening of のに or ために. Is this a case of ところを見ると? If so, why is the と being replaced by に?

What i've got is:

Judging from the fact that (he/Kiyonosuke) doesn't seem to be waiting for us, I'd say Uematsu Rikako has yet to come out (of her house).

But that に always confuses me.

shin_ra_ban_sho
  • 65
  • 3

1 Answers1

4

「に」 in this context is a conjunctive particle that connects a preface/introduction to a conclusion/opinion.

In meaning, 「に」=「と」in this sentence. The difference is that using 「と」 would make it more informal.

The translation provided looks good. The "judging from" part actually captures the nuance of this 「に」 well.

  • Do you have any sources where I can read up a little bit about this usage of に other than a j-j dictionary? I think I could learn a couple of things from that. – shin_ra_ban_sho Jun 07 '18 at 01:08