Breakdown of nebusoku ga tuduku to zutuu ga suru node, konya ha hayaku nerukoto ni suru.
Questions & Answers about nebusoku ga tuduku to zutuu ga suru node, konya ha hayaku nerukoto ni suru.
What does 寝不足 mean, and why is it used instead of a verb like あまり寝ない?
寝不足 is a noun meaning lack of sleep or sleep deprivation.
So:
- 寝不足が続く = a lack of sleep continues
- more naturally in English: if I keep not getting enough sleep
Japanese often uses noun-based expressions where English might prefer a full clause.
Compare:
- 寝不足が続く = lack of sleep continues
- あまり寝ない日が続く = days when I do not sleep much continue
Both can work, but 寝不足 is compact and very natural here.
Why is there a が after 寝不足?
The が marks 寝不足 as the subject of 続く.
So the structure is:
- 寝不足が続く
- literally: lack of sleep continues
Even though English might say if I keep not getting enough sleep, Japanese treats lack of sleep as the thing that is continuing.
What does 続く mean here?
続く means to continue.
In this sentence:
- 寝不足が続く = if my lack of sleep continues
- or more naturally: if I keep being sleep-deprived
It is an intransitive verb here, so the situation itself continues.
Japanese often describes ongoing conditions this way.
Why is と used after 続く? Does it mean and here?
No. Here と is not the and/with particle. It is a conditional marker.
- A と B = when/if A, B happens
So:
- 寝不足が続くと頭痛がする
- When/If lack of sleep continues, I get a headache
This と is often used when B is a natural, habitual, or automatic result of A.
That fits this sentence well:
- if sleep deprivation continues
- headaches happen
Why use と instead of たら, なら, or ば?
Because the speaker is talking about a regular consequence.
- 寝不足が続くと頭痛がする
- When I keep lacking sleep, I get headaches
This sounds like a general pattern or natural result.
Very roughly:
- と: when/if A happens, B naturally follows
- たら: if/when A happens, then B
- ば: if A, then B
- なら: if it is the case that A / if you say A
Here, と is especially natural because headaches are presented as the predictable result of continued lack of sleep.
Why is it 頭痛がする instead of something like 頭が痛い?
Both are possible, but they are slightly different expressions.
- 頭が痛い = my head hurts
- 頭痛がする = I get a headache / have a headache
頭痛 is a noun meaning headache, and する is often used with physical sensations or symptoms:
- せきがする = to have a cough
- めまいがする = to feel dizzy
- 吐き気がする = to feel nauseous
- 頭痛がする = to have a headache
So 頭痛がする is a very natural way to describe the symptom.
Why is there another が after 頭痛?
Here が marks 頭痛 as the thing that する occurs with.
In this pattern:
- 頭痛がする
- literally: a headache does
- natural English: I have a headache / I get headaches
This is just how this expression works in Japanese. It may feel strange if translated literally, but it is a standard pattern.
What is the difference between ので and から in this sentence?
Both can mean because, but ので sounds a bit more explanatory, softer, and less direct than から.
So:
- 頭痛がするので、今夜は早く寝ることにする。
- Because I get headaches, I’ll decide to go to bed early tonight.
If you used から, it would sound a little more straightforward or assertive:
- 頭痛がするから、今夜は早く寝ることにする。
Both are grammatical. ので fits nicely because the speaker is calmly giving a reason.
What does 今夜は mean, and why is は used?
今夜 means tonight.
The は marks it as the topic or sets the frame for what follows:
- 今夜は = as for tonight / tonight,
- 今夜は早く寝ることにする = Tonight, I’ll decide to go to bed early
Using は helps contrast tonight with other times, even if only slightly:
- maybe I have not gone to bed early on other nights
- but tonight, I will
What does 早く mean here? Is it the adjective 早い?
Yes. 早く is the adverb form of 早い.
- 早い = early
- 早く = early, in an early way
So:
- 早く寝る = to go to bed early
This is a common adjective-to-adverb change with -い adjectives:
- 速い → 速く
- 遅い → 遅く
- 早い → 早く
What does 寝ることにする mean exactly?
ことにする means to decide to do something.
So:
- 寝ることにする = decide to sleep
- more naturally: decide to go to bed
The structure is:
- dictionary form of verb + ことにする
Examples:
- 日本へ行くことにする = decide to go to Japan
- 毎日運動することにする = decide to exercise every day
- 早く寝ることにする = decide to go to bed early
It often implies a conscious decision by the speaker.
Why is it 寝ることにする and not just 寝る?
Using just 寝る would simply mean I will sleep / go to bed.
But 寝ることにする adds the nuance of making a decision:
- 今夜は早く寝る。 = I’m going to bed early tonight.
- 今夜は早く寝ることにする。 = I’ve decided to go to bed early tonight.
So the sentence is not only about the action, but also about the speaker’s choice in response to the headache problem.
Why is ことにする used instead of ようにする?
These expressions are different.
- ことにする = decide to do
- ようにする = make an effort to do / try to do habitually
So:
- 今夜は早く寝ることにする = Tonight, I’ll decide to go to bed early
- 早く寝るようにする = I’ll try to go to bed early / I’ll make a habit of going to bed early
In this sentence, the speaker is making a specific decision for tonight, so ことにする is the better fit.
Can you break down the whole sentence structure?
Yes. The sentence breaks down like this:
- 寝不足が続くと = if/when lack of sleep continues
- 頭痛がするので = because I get headaches
- 今夜は = tonight
- 早く寝ることにする = I’ll decide to go to bed early
So the overall flow is:
- a condition/pattern: if I keep not getting enough sleep
- its result: I get headaches
- the reason marker: so / because of that
- the speaker’s decision: I’ll go to bed early tonight
It is a very natural Japanese sentence because it moves from cause, to result, to decision.
Sign up free — start using our AI language tutor
Start learning JapaneseMaster Japanese — from nebusoku ga tuduku to zutuu ga suru node, konya ha hayaku nerukoto ni suru to fluency
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓Infinitely deep — unlimited vocabulary and grammar
- ✓Fast-paced — build complex sentences from the start
- ✓Unforgettable — efficient spaced repetition system
- ✓ AI tutor to answer your grammar questions