Breakdown of kodomo o kuruma ni tojikomenaide kudasai.
子供kodomo
child
車kuruma
car
をo
direct object particle
くださいkudasai
please
Questions & Answers about kodomo o kuruma ni tojikomenaide kudasai.
What does を mean here?
を marks the direct object of the verb.
In this sentence, 子供を means the child / children is the thing being affected by the action 閉じ込める.
So:
- 子供を = the child(ren) as the object
- 閉じ込めないでください = please do not lock in / shut in
In English, we do not usually mark the object with a special word, but Japanese does.
Why is it 車に and not 車を or 車で?
Here, に marks the place where someone ends up being shut in.
So 車に閉じ込める means to shut someone in a car.
Why not the others?
- 車に = in/into the car as the location of confinement
- 車を would make car the direct object, which does not fit here
- 車で often marks means or location of an action in some cases, but not the destination/place of being enclosed in this expression
With 閉じ込める, the pattern is often:
- person を place に 閉じ込める
For example:
- 猫を部屋に閉じ込めた。 = I shut the cat in the room.
What does 閉じ込めないでください mean grammatically?
