basu de nete ite, basutei o toorisugite shimaimashita.

direct object particle

Breakdown of basu de nete ite, basutei o toorisugite shimaimashita.

• で: location particle
• バス停てい: bus stop
• バス: bus

Questions & Answers about basu de nete ite, basutei o toorisugite shimaimashita.

Why is it バスで and not バスに?

In this sentence, で marks the place where the action happens.

• バスで寝ていて = while sleeping on the bus
• The action is 寝る (to sleep), so バス is treated as the location of that action.

If the verb were 乗る (to ride / get on), then に would be natural:

• バスに乗る = to ride/get on the bus

So:

• バスで寝る = sleep on the bus
• バスに乗る = ride the bus

What does 寝ていて mean here?

寝ていて comes from 寝ている, which means to be sleeping or to be asleep.

Breakdown:

• 寝る = to sleep
• 寝ている = be sleeping / be asleep
• 寝ていて = the て-form of 寝ている, used to connect to the next clause

So バスで寝ていて、 means:

• while I was sleeping on the bus, ...
• or I was asleep on the bus, and then ...

It sets up the background situation for what happened next.