kanojo wa shihatsu ni girigiri maniatte, hottoshite ita.

She just barely made the first train and looked relieved.

Breakdown of kanojo wa shihatsu ni girigiri maniatte, hottoshite ita.

• は: topic particle
• に: destination particle
• 〜て いる: progressive form
• 〜て: connective form

Questions & Answers about kanojo wa shihatsu ni girigiri maniatte, hottoshite ita.

What does 始発 mean here?

始発 means the first departure of the day. In this sentence, it most naturally means the first train.

A few useful notes:

• 始発 is often short for 始発電車
• In other contexts, it could mean the first bus, the first subway, etc.
• So 始発に間に合う means to make it in time for the first train

Why is there a に after 始発?

The verb 間に合う commonly uses に to mark the thing or time that someone makes it in time for.

So:

• 始発に間に合う = make it in time for the first train
• 会議に間に合う = make it in time for the meeting
• 締め切りに間に合う = meet the deadline / make the deadline

Here, に does not mean to in a movement sense. It marks the target event or deadline.

What does ぎりぎり mean in this sentence?