Breakdown of hosi ga kumo de mienai yoru mo, sora ha sizuka desu.
はha
topic particle
ですdesu
to be
がga
subject particle
でde
means particle
夜yoru
night
静かsizuka
quiet
空sora
sky
星hosi
star
見えるmieru
to be visible
〜ない〜nai
negative form
もmo
even
雲kumo
cloud
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Questions & Answers about hosi ga kumo de mienai yoru mo, sora ha sizuka desu.
**Why is 「が」 used after 「星」 instead of 「は」?
The particle が marks 星 as the grammatical subject of the clause 星が雲で見えない, focusing on the action “not being seen.” If you used は (星は), you’d be making 星 the topic and implying a contrast or general statement about stars, which changes the nuance. Here we simply state that “(the) stars aren’t visible” under certain conditions.
**What does 「雲で」 mean here? Is 「で」 an instrument?
In this sentence, で indicates cause or reason: “because of clouds” or “due to clouds.” It’s not an instrument (“with”), but explains why the stars can’t be seen. So 雲で見えない means “(they) cannot be seen because of clouds.”
**How does 「見えない夜」 work grammatically?
This is a relative clause. In Japanese, any phrase before a noun modifies it directly. So 星が雲で見えない (“stars aren’t visible because of clouds”) modifies 夜. Together 星が雲で見えない夜 means “nights when the stars aren’t visible.”
**What’s the role of 「も」 after 「夜」?
The particle も here means “even” or “also.” It emphasizes that even on those particular nights (when you can’t see the stars), the following applies. In English: “Even on nights when the stars aren’t visible…”
**Why is 「空」 marked with 「は」 in 「空は静かです」?
After setting up the condition (“even on those nights”) with も, the sentence shifts to a new topic: 空は. Here は marks 空 (“the sky”) as the topic, so we’re saying, “As for the sky, it is quiet.” This contrastive use emphasizes the “sky” despite the earlier mention of “nights.”
**Why is 「静か」 followed by 「です」? Isn’t that a noun?
静か is an na-adjective (形容動詞). To predicate it politely, you attach です. So 静かです means “is quiet.” Without です, it would sound abrupt or plain (静かだ).
**Could I rephrase 「星が雲で見えない夜も、空は静かです」 in another way?
Yes. A more casual version:
・星が雲に隠れて見えない夜でも、空は静かだ。
Here 雲に隠れて (“hidden by clouds”) adds a slight nuance, 夜でも can replace 夜も, and だ is the casual copula instead of です. The overall meaning remains the same.